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The Devils are practicing at RWJBarnabas Health Hockey House inside Prudential Center on Thursday afternoon.

Stay tuned to the notebook for the latest info, updates, interviews, videos and more from the practice session!

Practice Info

Devils defenseman Colton White was not on the ice for Devils practice. Everyone else was accounted for. After practice, the Devils announced that White and forward Juho Lammikko will be place on waivers.

The team used the same workflow with the one tweak of Johnathan Kovacevic back in the lineup with Jonas Siegenthaler while blueliner Simon Nemec appears to be the odd man out.

While the lineup indicates Kovacevic's return tomorrow when the Devils host the Carolina Hurricanes, that is still to be determined, per head coach Sheldon Keefe.

"We're gonna see where Kovacevic is at precisely for tomorrow. However, if he's feeling good and able to play as we suspect he is, then yeah, (the lineup) would look like it is today," Keefe said. "Obviously, that leaves Nemec on the outside. Not an easy decision given if it is a priority, we wanna get ';Nemo' back going here. But it's a big game coming up, and Dougie (Hamilton) has played well since he's come back."

The Devils have an important game against the Hurricanes, and they feel Kovacevic is a guy that can really help out on the back end.

"We want to see what Kovacevic can bring for us in a game like this, and he's another guy we're trying to get up and running and get him going," Keefe said. "So, with seven bona fide NHL defensemen, I'm in a tough spot here to make decisions on a daily basis. Not easy conversations. 'Nemo' wants to play, but I've gotta make a call, and that's the way it goes for tomorrow. And then make a decision from there as we get out down the road."

Upward Trend

The Devils are coming off two consecutive victories at Minnesota, 5-2, and against Seattle, 3-2 in overtime. Prior to that, the club had lost four straight games. It shows the ebbs and flows that can occur in a season.

“We've talked about our game over the last couple of weeks, and the result is kinda based on the process we talk about, our game plan and really executing it, and the competitive part of it,” defenseman Brenden Dillon said. “And I think we've gotten the results in the last two, but I think we really earned the last two wins, too.”

Most telling about the last two results where the different types of games that unfolded. Against Minnesota, the Devils played a more up-and-down chance-for-chance game that resulted in a lot of goals. Against Seattle, the Kraken clamp down in the neutral zone and suck the life out of opponents. The Devils remained patient, baited their time and were able to grind out an OT win.

“What I liked about our game, both games have been different,” Keefe said. “So, there's different elements. You gotta kinda manage it differently, like the types of games, the way the games were played, just far different low-event game the other night, and then in Minnesota is high-event game, lots going on, and we had to manage that.”

The results aside, there was one aspect of the Devils’ play that Keefe believes led to the victories.

“I think the things that stand out that I would say are consistent in both games,” Keefe said, “is we've been able to get the game moving in the other team's direction with consistency to the point that we're getting them tired, and that's when we're at our best is when we're wearing teams down, capitalizing on them being fatigued, sort of manipulating the game in a way in which we can win the line change game. That's when we're at our best, and then we've seen signs of that.”

Current Affairs

The Devils have played 47 games this season and have a record of 24-21-2 for 50 points. That puts them four points out of a playoff position.

With 47 games in the books, the players discussed where they think the team currently is and what they’ve learned about themselves in just over half of a season.

“I think now we've got enough of a track record over these 47 to know when we're winning and when, not just winning, but playing the right way, what that looks like,” Dillon said. “And on the opposite side, when we're not, most times, we're not getting the wins. The teams are too good in this league. I think we've learned that out, where you can't just expect to throw your skates on and go out and win, even as skilled or good as a team we think we are.

“So, I would say we're still a little bit of trying to get that consistency, which when you can do that, you have to earn your way into the playoffs. You need to earn your way through the tough stretches of the year.”

“It’s a long season and a lot of games left to play,” center Cody Glass said. “So, if we can kinda get our stride again and string along some wins and just play good hockey, have a good process, I feel like we're gonna be in a good spot.”

The Devils have 10 games left before hitting the February Winter Olympic break. They’ll get a two-plus week rest. After that will be the final sprint and 25 games to jockey for position and playoff berths.

“As we get into these last 30, 35 games, teams are really starting to see where they're working for the home-ice advantage, a wild card spot, tops in the league,” Dillon said. “Really this is where the separation happens, and as we get into the Olympic break, I think once we come back from that, there's probably only 20, 25 games really left. So just the importance here of getting to overtime, like in the Seattle game, of making the right plays at the right time, and something we've also stressed this year.”

Greasing the Groove

It’s been a tough year for Evgenii Dadonov. Two lengthy injuries have limited him to just eight games played on the season.

However, since returning to the lineup, he has played in the past three straight games for the Devils, two of which were victories. Despite missing long stretches, he feels his health and conditioning is in a good spot.

“Conditioning is fine,” he said. “I've been work out and skating before, so that's no problem. Timing, it takes a little bit to get back into it.”

With the upper-body injuries, Dadonov was still able to skate and keep his conditioning and speed at a high level. One area he hasn’t been able to work on is the team’s systems. For that, there is no substitute for game action and reps.

“That's probably hardest part right now for me,” he said. “Guys played a lot already, so I haven't. So, understanding, playing more with different players, just know how the team plays. I kinda know that in theory, but I haven't really played that style with everybody.”

Dadonov will get more comfortable with every shift and every game. And though he hasn’t been able to help his team as much as he’d like this year, he knows there is a lot of runway left to get involved.

“Long season,” he said. “I always thought that the team is good and can beat any team in the league, so any time we get to this point, it is what it is. But I think if we just keep working hard and play our game, it's gonna be normal.”

He Said It:

Cody Glass on his own game at this point in the season: "It's been good. I think, like you said, kinda injuries and lingering stuff always, always playing a factor. But I felt good. I feel like the system's been, a system I kind of fit in. Especially playing with (Connor) Brown and (Arseny Gritsyuk), it makes it a lot easier on myself. And when the team's winning, everybody looks good. So, that's a huge thing for myself and everybody else."

Mid-Season Musings

Amanda Stein has another installment of her 10 Takeaways. Among them is the below...

Fitzgerald gets it. He knows the expectations haven’t been met so far this season, and that the bar is set high because of what this core has shown it can do in recent years.

And that bar isn’t coming down. If anything, it’s going up. This group, and anyone who joins it, is going to be expected to raise the standard, because where things sit right now simply isn’t good enough.

Fitzgerald didn’t shy away from that reality either.

“We’re not meeting the standard and expectations we’ve set, this organization has set,” he said. “I feel for the fans. I really do. They’re used to Stanley Cup championship teams… Anything less is unacceptable.”

Read in full here.