Devils Face Blues During Homestand | PREVIEW

New Jersey hosts the St. Louis Blues in the middle leg of its three-game homestand. Puck drop is at 7:08 p.m. ET. 

You can watch on ESPN or listen on the Devils Hockey Network.

Read below for your game preview and pre-game story below.

PRE-GAME STORY

The Devils did not hold a morning skate Thursday ahead of the facing the St. Louis Blues. Interim head coach Travis Green spoke with the media ahead of the team.

Forward Tyler Toffoli, who is in the final year of his contract, will be held out of the game tonight for “precautionary trade-related reasons.” The team has been in talks about re-signing Toffoli, who leads the team with 26 goals, but is be cautious with the trade deadline being tomorrow.

Forward Ondrej Palat, who missed the past game with a lower-body injury, will return to the lineup.

Rookie defenseman Simon Nemec was a healthy scratch Tuesday night. But he will draw back into the lineup against the Blues.

“I told him he wasn’t going to play (Tuesday). He needed a reset,” Green said. “We wanted him to breathe for a couple of days. Have a couple good practices, good skates. He’s excited to get back in tonight. I told him to have a lot of confidence in his game. I like it when he skates, handles the puck and makes plays. That’s part of his game. Just be excited to play.

Green wouldn’t say which defenseman will be coming out of the lineup in place of Nemec.

One area the Devils would like to improve upon for this game is their start. They fell behind 2-0 in the opening seven minutes Tuesday night against Florida.

“I’d like to see us execute with the puck. Making sure we get into their zone and get momentum going our way,” Green said. “We talked about getting pucks to the night like a lot of teams do. A lot of nights that’s easier said and done.

“For our team it’s just being ready to skate and manage the game.”

PREVIEW

DEVILS (30-28-4) vs. BLUES (32-27-3)

Head-to-Head

The Devils and Blues meet for the second and final time this season, and only meeting in New Jersey. The Blues notched a 4-1 victory on Nov. 3 in Missouri.

St. Louis’ Kevin Hayes posted two goals and three points in the game while goalie Jordan Binnington stopped 33 of 34 shots. Curtis Lazar had the lone Devils goal.

Devils Team Scope:

The Devils continue their quest for a playoff spot. The team is eight points back of both the second Wild Card (Tampa) and the third Metro (Philadelphia) with 20 games remaining on the calendar.

Travis Green has taken the helm as interim head coach with Lindy Ruff being relieved of his duties. The team lost its opening game, 5-3, with Green behind the bench to the Florida Panthers Tuesday night.

The Devils are led on offense by Jesper Bratt’s 64 points on 22 goals and 42 assists. Jack Hughes is right behind him with 21 goals and 59 points, even though he’s missed 16 games this season due to injury. Captain Nico Hischier has 20 goals on the year, his fourth career 20-goal campaign. Forward Tyler Toffoli leads the club with 26 goals.

Blues Team Scope:

The Blues are fighting for their playoff lives. They are in the third Wild Card position, but sitting six points behind both Nashville and Vegas. St. Louis is in the midst of a five-game road trip through the East Coast. This is the third leg of that stop.

Robert Thomas leads the team in scoring with 69 points on 20 goals and 49 assists. He’s followed by Pavel Buchnevich and Jordan Kyrou (both with 48 points). Blueliner Tory Krug paces the backend with 29 assists and 32 points. Goaltender Jordan Binnington is 22-16-3 with a 2.83 goals-against average and .912 save percentage.

By the Numbers:

Forward Timo Meier has a three-game goal streak (3g) and a four-game point streak (3g-2a). 

Since Jan. 11 the Blues power play is 21 for 79 (26.6%).  

Injuries:

Devils

Hamilton (torn pectoral muscle - LTIR)
Vanecek - (lower-body - IR)
Palat (lower-body)

Blues

None.