Bouncing Back
The Hurricanes find themselves in the midst of a stretch of five consecutive games against divisional opponents, and they'll be looking for a bounce-back effort in New Jersey after dropping a 3-1 decision in Washington after returning from the holiday break.
The power play was the difference maker on Thursday, as the Capitals converted one of their four opportunities, while the Canes whiffed on their four cracks at the man advantage. Sebastian Aho scored the lone goal of the game for his team, cutting the deficit to just one in the third period, but that's as close as the Canes would come.
"Our game is close. We're not out of games. We're right there, and the turning point seems to go the other way right now. We've got to find ways to turn it our way," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said after practice on Friday. "We are close, but we need everybody to contribute. We're not getting contributions from everyone right now."
PROJECTED LINEUP
If the Canes convert any one of their four power-play opportunities in Washington, perhaps the result is different. Alas, the man advantage was one of the chief focuses of Friday's practice in Newark.
"We've moved the units around, put in new people. We've tried quite a few different things. But at the end of the day, you've got to execute. You've got to bring the work ethic," Brind'Amour said. "If you're a painter, paint, and if you're a plumber, plumb. We've got to do what we do. We've got some high-end players who need to make plays. That's what it comes down to."
The Last Meeting
The Hurricanes scored two goals in an eight-second span in the first 30 seconds of the game, all the offense they would need to defeat the Devils, 2-1, in Raleigh on Nov. 18. After dropping a disappointing 4-1 result to the Columbus Blue Jackets the night prior, scoring on the first two shifts of the game was an emphatic response for the Canes, who finished a season-long, six-game homestand with a 4-1-1 record.
The Opposition
The Devils returned from the holiday break with a 5-2 victory over the Boston Bruins but have won just four of 12 games in the month of December and find themselves at the bottom of the Eastern Conference with a 13-16-7 record (33 points). New Jersey will be without leading scorer Taylor Hall and forward Marcus Johansson.
ADVANCE AUTO PARTS KEYS TO THE GAME
