Devils Open Preseason with Split Squad | PREVIEW

The Devils open their preseason slate of games with a split squad matchup Monday night. New Jersey will host the Philadelphia Flyers at Prudential Center while another squad will travel to Montreal to face the Canadiens at Bell Centre.

Both games are at 7 p.m. The home contest against Philadelphia will be live streamed on the Devils website and YouTube channel, and can be heard on the the Devils Radio Network. 

The Devils will hold two morning skates for each game. Stay tuned for rosters, interviews and more updates ahead of the duel contests.

Devils vs. Flyers

Lineup:

Forwards
10 Holtz
12 Thompson
13 Hischier
15 Bowers
18 Palat
20 McLeod
28 Meier
48 Halonen
49 Schmelzer
56 Haula
63 Bratt
89 Filmon

Defensemen
2 Smith
7 Hamilton
52 C.Foote
59 Misyul
82 Hatakka
88 Bahl

Goalies
41 Vanecek
31 Kallgren

Notes:

* The Devils were 2-2 against the Flyers last season, which included a 7-0 shutout on Feb. 25 at Prudential Center.

* Erik Haula missed practice Sunday but will play tonight.

* New Jersey didn’t do line rushes but they did work on special teams. The power play units were as follows…
PP1: Hamilton, Meier, Bratt, Holtz, Hischier
PP2: Bahl, Palat, Haula, Filmon, Halonen

* While they didn’t rush lines, the trio of Alexander Holtz, Nico Hischier and Timo Meier worked throughout the first four days of training camp. They showed well in the scrimmages and will likely get a look tonight.

* The Devils will have coaches Ryan McGill, Chris Taylor and Ryan Parent (Utica) on the bench at Prudential Center. Head coach Lindy Ruff will watch the game from above, while also monitoring the game in Montreal with general manager Tom Fitzgerald.

“I’ll communicate with the coaches between periods and come down,” Ruff said. “It’s a great opportunity to see a game from up top.”

* Goaltender Vitek Vanecek will start and play two periods while Erik Kallgren will play the final period.

* It’ll be an interesting camp for Tyce Thompson. The Devils are loaded on the fourth line with Michael McLeod, Curtis Lazar, Tomas Nosek and Nathan Bastian. Thompson is looking to squeeze his way into the lineup. He look fast and energetic during the scrimmages. But to earn a spot he’ll need to show it in the preseason games, starting tonight.

Quotes:

Haula on the preseason:

You just want to be ready when October 12 comes around. The goal is to be in the best shape you possibly can, get the timing right, form some connection with your linemates, chemistry. Just get the reps in. We're looking for a good battle tonight against Philly. It should be fun for everyone.

Thompson on earning a spot:

Showing that I can have offensive touch out there, too. Still play that fourth-line role but when you have an opportunity to make plays, do that.

Cal Foote on possibly playing with his brother Nolan:

He was the first one I told (about signing in New Jersey). He was real excited. Just as excited as me.

--Sam Kasan, NewJerseyDevils.com

Devils at Canadiens

Lineup:

Forwards:
11 Tierney
25 N. Foote
36 Gambardella
37 Dowling
42 Lazar
45 Criscuolo
46 Willman
73 Toffoli
86 J. Hughes
91 Mercer
92 Nosek
95 Clarke

Defense:
6 Marino
17 Nemec
24 Miller
38 Vilen
71 Siegenthaler
81 Vukojevic

Goalies
1 Kinkaid
40 Schmid

Notes:

* Even though it's just the first preseason game there are some fun storylines to follow in the game against Montreal. For starters, Tyler Toffoli will play against Montreal, a team he played for less than two years ago. Simon Nemec will be in the lineup putting him up against his Slovak friend Juraj Slafkovsky who was taken 1st overall in 2022, with Nemec following closely behind at second. This will be the first time the two match up against each other in any way at the NHL level. 

* Meanwhile, Dawson Mercer will be up against Alex Newhook, both players hail from Newfoundland, Canada. 

* Earlier this morning in Montreal, defenseman David Reinbacher, drafted 5th overall this past June, mentioned how he was hoping to go up against some of the Devils' Swiss players tonight. Reinbacher has been playing in the Swiss league. He'll get that chance tonight with Akira Schmid set to start the game and play the opening 40 minutes, while Jonas Siegenthaler will patrol the Devils' blueline. 

Quotes:

Nemec on playing against Slafkovsky for the first time, ever:

I'm so excited. I think this is the first game ever, we've never played against each other. I am so excited. I hope there will be a lot of fans there. It will be a great game for us.

Mercer on facing Newhook:

It's a pretty cool thing just because there's only the two of us (from Newfoundland) in the league. So it's pretty special when you can say 'all of us' are on the ice at the same time. 

--Amanda Stein, NJD.tv