THE SCOOP
The Devils conclude their three-game road trip Tuesday night in Winnipeg, looking to extend a five-game winning streak that has lifted them to a 13-5-0 record through their first 18 games.
New Jersey has won nine of its last 10 games and is coming off a 4-0 victory over Toronto Sunday night at Scotiabank Arena.
Timo Meier scored twice in the second period to give the Devils a 2-0 lead, while Nico Hischier added a power-play goal in the third. Connor Brown finished the scoring with an empty-net goal. Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt each recorded two assists.
The victory followed a dramatic 5-4 overtime win over the Islanders on Saturday night, when New Jersey erased a two-goal third-period deficit before Jack Hughes scored the winner on a breakaway just 1:18 into overtime.
The two wins continued a strong stretch for the Devils, who also defeated Edmonton, St. Louis and Vegas during their current streak.
Hughes has been particularly productive, recording 11 points (5g-6a) over his last five games. The 25-year-old was named the NHL's Second Star of the Week on Monday after recording nine points in four games.
New Jersey will be without forward Anthony Mantha, who returned to New Jersey for further evaluation after suffering a throat injury against the Islanders on Saturday. Mantha has five goals and 10 points in 17 games this season.
The Devils recalled forward Riley Tufte from Utica on Monday. The 6-foot-6 winger recorded 56 points (32g-24a) with Providence in the American Hockey League last season and has two assists in nine games with the Comets this year.
Jake Allen will start in goal for New Jersey.
Winnipeg, meanwhile, has put together a three-game winning streak of its own following a difficult stretch that saw the Jets go nine consecutive games without a victory.
The Jets are 7-8-3 through 18 games and have won their last three contests against Montreal, Vancouver and Tampa Bay.
Winnipeg's turnaround began with a remarkable 5-4 overtime victory in Montreal on Nov. 3. Trailing 4-0 with less than three minutes remaining in regulation, the Jets scored four times in a span of 2:06 to force overtime before Dylan Samberg scored the winner.
Winnipeg followed that with a 6-2 victory over Vancouver on Thursday before defeating Tampa Bay 4-3 on Sunday in another game decided in the final moments.
The Jets built a 3-0 lead against the Lightning before Tampa Bay scored three goals in just over four minutes during the third period. Mark Scheifele scored on a 5-on-3 power play with 1.6 seconds remaining to secure the victory.
Kyle Connor leads Winnipeg with 13 goals and 19 points through 18 games. Scheifele has four goals and 18 points, while Cole Perfetti has contributed seven goals and 14 points.