With goaltender Vitek Vanecek not on the ice and getting his own net to work at Monday's practice, it appears he is the likely starting goaltender, though not confirmed.
When asked if he thinks he will stick with an 11-7 lineup (11 forwards and seven defensemen)," Ruff responded: "I do."
11-7
The Devils also dressed seven defensemen in their 8-4 Game 3 victory, with Graves missing the contest due to an injury. And it allows for several advantages.
"More playing time for your top-9 players," Ruff said. "Everybody from (Ondrej) Palat to everybody else, their minutes can go up. You have to really put the game in their hands."
"We have some horses in our locker room. It lets them go a little bit more," center Jack Hughes said. "You're playing every third shift with the rotation in there.
"It might allow the horses to get going a little bit more. A few more shifts and a few more O zone plays."
Response
The Devils are hoping to carry over its performance from Game 3 into Game 4. But the team expects a hard push back from the Hurricanes.
"I really want them to build off the energy and the compete we had from last game," Ruff said. "(We expect Carolina to have) the same fire that we had to come out after our disappointing Game 2 in their building when they took it to us. I fully anticipate that their game is going to look a lot different."
"We played a really good Game 3, so we have to match that energy and play the same way," Hughes said. "We know they're going to come out harder and play better. We're have to play the same way we did and probably bring it up a step."
The Devils will also have home-ice advantage, which benefits them both from the crowd but also last line change, getting a matchup advantage.
As Ruff said: "If you said at the start of the year you're down 2-1 and you get Game 4 at your building, we'd say, 'bring it on.'"
PREVIEW
Game 4
TV: 7 p.m. ET; Televised on ESPN
RADIO: 7 p.m. ET; Live on Devils Hockey Network
SERIES SCHEDULE: Carolina Leads 2-1
Game 1: Hurricanes 5, Devils 1
Game 2: Hurricanes 6, Devils 1
Game 3: Devils 8, Hurricanes 4
Game 4: Tuesday, May 9, 7 p.m., at New Jersey, ESPN
Game 5: Thursday, May 11, 7 p.m., at Carolina, TNT
\Game 6: Saturday, May 13, time TBD, at New Jersey, ESPN
\Game 7: Monday, May 15, time TBD, at Carolina, ESPN
NJD: Jack Hughes posted a playoff career-high two goals, two assists and four points in Game 3's 8-4 victory.
CAR: Jesperi Kotkaniemi scored two goals in Game 2's 6-1 victory. He also added a game-high six shots, two hits and won 59-percent of his faceoffs. He has three goals in the series.
By the Numbers:
Devils
Hughes leads the Devils in playoff scoring with five goals and nine points.
Luke Hughes made his NHL playoff debut in Game 3, picking up two assists.
Defenseman Damon Severson scored his first-career playoff goal.
Dawson Mercer had a career-best three assists/points in Game 3.
Bastian (1g-1a) and McLeod (2a) both lead the Devils in scoring in the Second Round series.
Miles Wood scored his first career playoff goal in Game 2.
Vitek Vanecek replaced Akira Schmid in both games.
Hurricanes
The Hurricanes have the top penalty kill of the post-season with an incredible 95 percent efficiency. The Carolina penalty killers took care of business going 6-for-6 against New Jersey.
Jesperi Kotkaniemi's goal in Game 1 was his first goal in 21 playoff games with Carolina.
Game 3 Recap: Devils 8, Hurricanes 4
Jack Hughes posted two goals and four points in an offensive explosion as the Devils won 8-4 in Game 3 to make it a 2-1 series.
Jordan Staal, Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis and Jordan Martinook scored for the Canes.
Game 2 Recap: Hurricanes 6, Devils 1
The Hurricanes sweep the opening two games of the Second Round series at home following a 6-1 victory Friday night at PNC Arena.
Jesperi Kotkaniemi scored twice while Jordan Staal, Martin Necas, Jordan Martinook and Stefan Noesen also tallied.
Miles Wood scored the lone goal for New Jersey, his first-career playoff goal.
Game 1 Recap: Hurricanes 5, Devils 1
The Hurricanes took the Devils by storm with a 5-1 win in the opening game of the Second Round series Wednesday night at PNC Arena.
Brett Pesce, Seth Jarvis, Jesper Fast, Brady Skjei and Jesperi Kotkaniemi all posted goals.
Nathan Bastian scored the lone goal for New Jersey, his first-career playoff goal.
2022-23 Regular-Season Series Recap
The Devils and Hurricanes split their season series with two wins a piece. The Devils (2-1-1) had the edge in points over the Hurricanes (2-2-0).
The Hurricanes won the opening game of the four regular season meetings between the two teams, on Dec. 20, 2022. The two teams met on New Years Day in New Jersey where Carolina beat the Devils in the shootout, 5-4. The Devils won the final two games of the regular season between the clubs, first a 5-3 win in Raleigh and in the final game between the two clubs this season, New Jersey shutout Carolina in a 3-0 final with Vitek Vanecek posting the victory.
By the Numbers (Regular Season):
Devils
Set franchise records in 2022-23 with 52 wins and 112 points. The club also set an NHL record with a 49-point improvement from last season (82-game schedule).
The Devils led the NHL and set a franchise record this season with 26 comeback victories and nine multiple-goal comebacks.
The Devils tied a franchise record with 28 road victories this year, going 28-9-4.
The Devils had two 40-goal scorers on the roster: Hughes, 43; Timo Meier, 40.
The Devils had four 30-goal scorers: Hughes, 43, Meier, 40; Jesper Bratt, 32; Nico Hischier, 31.
Jack Hughes set a franchise record with 99 points (43g-56a) to best Patrik Elias' 96 points in 2000-01.
Tomas Tatar finished with a plus-41, a career high that ranked 5th in the NHL.
Dougie Hamilton's 22 goals tied Barry Beck (Colorado, 1977-78) for the most in franchise history.
Goalie Vitek Vanecek set a career high with 33 wins this season, joining Martin Brodeur as the only 30-win goaltenders in franchise history.
Hurricanes
For the sixth straight season, Sebastian Aho led the team in goals with 36.
The Hurricanes set a franchise record with 59 goals this season from their blueliners.
Like the Devils, the Hurricanes finished the season with 52 wins. Carolina went 52-21-9 (113 pts)
Carolina had the fourth-best home record league-wide going 28-10-3 at PNC Arena.