MORNING SKATE RECAP
NEWARK, NJ - The Devils held a full morning skate Wednesday ahead of hosting the Philadelphia Flyers at Prudential Center.
Devils captain Nico Hischier, who missed the club’s previous game with an injury, was absent from the morning skate and will not play. Meanwhile forward Nathan Bastian, who left Monday’s game after taking a hard hit in the second period, was on the ice and expected to play.
Hischier has been listed as week-to-week with an undisclosed injury, suffered after taking a cross check from Montreal’s Nick Suzuki last Saturday night.
“He’s not available, it’s going to be week to week,” coach Sheldon Keefe said. “It’s something they’ll evaluate again next week and take it from there. But he won’t be available this week.”
The Devils will have to find a way to fill a massive void left by Hischier. He’s the team’s leading goal scorer with 24. He’s the team’s top defensive center, drawing the bill against the opposition’s best players. He logs a ton of minutes in all situations.
“That’s a guy we lean on for so much,” Bastian said. “Whether it’s power-play, PK, 4-on-4, end of the game, start of the game, who to go to for a voice. It’s Nico. So, when he’s gone you need a collection of guys to step up, probably everyone, not just a few. Hopefully in times like that we can come together and show that we can miss our top guys and we’re still the team that we are.”
Bastian, who still wears a protective shield after suffering a broken jaw in November, was hit hard by the Flyers’ Nick Seeler while skating with his head down across the blue line.
“I’m happy I’m OK. I was worried about my jaw for a second,” Bastian said. “I don’t like the spot I put myself in. When they say be aware of who’s on the ice, it’s not just their top line, it’s guys like that. I think the hit was fine. I didn’t lose sleep because it was bad, I was just mad at myself.”
Defensive Shuffle
The Devils have used the same defensive pairings for the opening 52 games of the season. The coaching staff made some changes to those pairings in the second half of Monday’s game in Philadelphia and it looks as though they’ll stick with the new units. The Devils used the following workflow at the morning skate.
Palat – Hughes – Bratt
Meier – Mercer – Noesen
Cotter – Dowling – Tatar
MacDermid – Lazar – Bastian
Siegenthaler – Hamilton
Dillon – Pesce
Hughes – Kovacevic
Allen in the starter’s net.
“The guys have been consistently good, but like we saw with the forward groups, there comes a time when you need to look at something else,” Keefe said. “Sometimes that can help shake your team up a little bit and get their attention and get things to snap into place.
“We know what works and what has worked. It’s a chance to try something a little different and see what it brings.”
Dougie Hamilton and Jonas Siegenthaler have played together a lot over the past few years, so there is some familiarity there. The rest of the group will have to get used to each other, including the pairing of Luke Hughes and Johnathan Kovacevic.
“He’s super skilled offensively. Hopefully I can be a nice contrast to that,” Kovacevic said, “take care of our own zone and support him up the ice in the O zone and give him that freedom to be the player that he can be.
“The coaches are trying to get us going a little bit. At the end of the day, it’s on us. We know it comes from within. The change may freshen things up. We’re excited for it.”
Low Fly
The Devils have lost the first two games against Philadelphia. Though each has been a tight game, the Devils haven’t done enough in the game within the game to win.
“As a group we want to up our compete level a bit. That’s been the message for us,” Kovacevic said. “They’re playing hard. They’ve been tight games. In tight games it’s a little battle here and there. It may not look like a lot but that’s what ends up being the difference in the game. And we dropped both (games) to these guys in regulation. It’s on us to win those little battles, come up with those pucks and come up with the win tonight.”
Low Shot
The Flyers play a very distinct style in the defensive zone. They play tight to the crease and concede a lot of the perimeter. They allow a lot of free movement, however, there are so many layers of bodies to the net that Philadelphia blocks a lot of shots.
“They do really good job of clogging up the lane and clogging up the middle of the ice,” Kovacevic said. “It’s about finding different lanes of attack. Maybe we make a pass and shoot quickly off the pass as opposed to holding it and letting them get their layers. A lot of times we may get it past their first layer, but their second, third layer blocks a shot. If we can change the angle with a pass or with our feet, maybe something like that. That’s an area of emphasis tonight for sure.”
Mr. 900
Devils forward Tomas Tatar is playing in his 900th career NHL game tonight against the Flyers.
"That's a lot of games," Tatar said. "That's not my focus. I focus on the team. These milestones come along with that. I'm not thinking about it at all. I'm just focused on winning a game."