LAS VEGAS, NV -New Jersey held a morning skate at T-Mobile Arena Monday afternoon prior to taking on the Vegas Golden Knights. Blueliner Ryan Graves, who missed last game after getting cut in the chin by a skate, joined the group wearing a protective face shield.
The Devils used the following workflow…
Tatar - Hischier - Zetterlund
Zacha - Mercer - Bratt
Sharangovich - Boqvist - Kuokkanen
Johnsson - McLeod - Bastian
White - Severson
Bahl - Hamilton
Smith - Subban
PP1: Hamilton, Bratt, Zacha, Hischier, Bastian
P2: Severson, Mercer, Sharangovich, Zetterlund, Tatar (Smith rotated in)
Tomas Top-Tar
The Devils shuffled their lines against Seattle and it resulted in forward Tomas Tatar playing on the top line with Nico Hischier and Fabian Zetterlund. The spark helped the Devils tie that contest and force overtime.
Head coach Lindy Ruff kept that trio together for the club's morning skate and will likely open the game with the threesome.
"We were down last game and made some line changes and it worked out," Tatar said. "This is on the coach. He's coaching the game. He's making these decisions. You as a player, you just have to be ready and respect the decisions. The line changes can happen again during the game. We're just trying to find the best possible chemistry. Obviously, we want to win, and maybe that gives us a spark."
Mask Up
Graves was happy to rejoin his teammates on the ice. And looking back at the incident of getting cut by the skate in Colorado, he feels very fortunate.
"When you reflect on it, it was definitely a scary incident. I'm lucky. It could have been a lot worse," he said. "When you look back at it, you realize how much worse it could have been if it was an inch closer or an inch lower down. If it's going to happen in that area, it's fortunate it happened the way it did."
Graves received 19 stiches, 17 on top and two below. And he said the goal now is to keep the cut from worsening.
"I feel fine. It's just a cut. It's more precautionary to avoid an infection because that could get a lot worse," he said. "Just make sure it continues to heal. I don't think it'll be much longer. It's just getting through the first few days and then you're fine again. It's not a cut on your arm. It's a tough spot where you have a lot of blood flow. It's just making sure it's a couple games and not something more serious."
Although the shield was a bit awkward at first, Graves knows it's needed.
"It's necessary. I'm getting used to it for right now," he said. "It's fine. It's a little weird at first but two minutes afterward you don't even notice it."
Vegas Baby, Vegas
The atmosphere in Vegas is one of the best in the NHL. The building is loud, the in-game entertainment is top notch and the fans are electric. And for many Devils players, it'll be their first experience in T-Mobile Arena.
"It's a very loud building, maybe the loudest in the league," Tatar said. "They'll enjoy the warmup when they can all sink it in. During the game when you're focused, you might acknowledge the atmosphere, but I think everybody is so focused it slips away. It's definitely a loud building and a lot of fun."
Vegas is currently fighting for a playoff spot, sitting on the outside four points behind Nashville. The playoff-like intensity should only bolster the game.
"The atmosphere is something the players will have to get used to right off the bat. It's loud," Ruff said. "We know where they're at. We know how important this game is for them. We have a good road trip going. We can make it even better. Turn it into a 3-1-1 road trip. That's something we've talked about as a team. We also know how well we're going to have to play to get that done."
--Sam Kasan, NewJerseyDevils.com
