TAMPA, FL - The Devils complete their road trip with another tough test today against Tampa Bay. Devils head coach Lindy Ruff talked about the task that lies ahead for his squad.
"If you look at the first period in Florida, there was a lot of skating and a lot of open ice for us. We had 22 shots on goal and probably could have had another six or seven. I don't think we're going to get that many opportunities against this team because they'll be tighter defensively," Ruff stated.
"We looked at both these games (prior to the trip). Florida team playing extremely well and Tampa playing extremely well. How that matchup looks like and how it'll work out."
One of Tampa Bay's biggest strengths is their power play, which has been even hotter as of late with six goals in their last eight games. Ruff said one of the keys for his club is staying out of the penalty box.
"It's one thing we try to stress every game," he said. "Last game, our discipline was good. We need to try to stay within two to three penalties per game. We know how lethal their power play can be. They've got shooters, they've got different options, they've got Hedman at the back-end. If we're taking a penalty, it has to be a good one."
Another key for the club, Ruff noted, is for the Devils to play the game quickly -- both in terms of moving their feet and moving the puck.
"Their defense, they have some players who are really dominating in the back-end with the small ice. We have to move the puck quickly," he said. "If we're skating, motion will create some extra opportunities but if we get stopped (on the wall), they're a good team once they're in their system."
LINEUP CHANGES
The only lineup change mentioned by Ruff was that Jesper Boqvist will be out of the lineup with an upper-body injury. Alexander Holtz rotated into Boqvist's line at practice yesterday along with Yegor Sharangovich, meaning it's possible that line just sees Sharangovich shifting to the middle.
"Right now, we've got Holtz going back in the lineup. We'll have to see if Alex can help us out."
Projected lineup for today:
Zacha - Hischier - Tatar
Johnsson - Mercer - Bratt
Holtz - Sharangovich - Kuokkanen
Vesey - McLeod - Zetterlund
Graves - Hamilton
Smith - Severson
Siegenthaler - Subban
Mackenzie Blackwood gets the start in goal.
