Flames at Devils preview

FLAMES (40-16-7) AT DEVILS (25-30-8)
7 p.m. ET; MSG+, NHL.TV

The Flames, who have outscored opponents 21-11 in six consecutive victories after a four-game losing streak (0-2-2), have the best record in the Western Conference and lead the Pacific Division, five points ahead of the San Jose Sharks.
Forward Kyle Palmieri, the Devils' leading scorer with 48 points (26 goals, 22 assists) in 63 games, is week to week because of a lower-body injury sustained late in the third period of a 2-1 win against the Montreal Canadiens on Monday.
Defenseman Sami Vatanen will return to the New Jersey lineup after missing the past 14 games with a concussion.
The Devils are 4-2-0 in their past six games after going 1-4-1 in their previous six.

Players to watch

Flames center Mikael Backlund has eight points (four goals, four assists) in a six-game point streak.
Devils center Travis Zajac has four points (one goal, three assists) in his past five games.

They said it

"We're obviously finding ways to win close hockey games, but we're doing it the right way. I think we've played really solid defensively, and we're getting rewarded because of it." -- Flames goalie Mike Smith
"I think our goaltending situation is exciting because we have [Cory Schneider] who is trying to reprove himself and [Mackenzie Blackwood] trying to prove himself. Schneider is trying to get his game back and feel good about his game. Mackenzie has shown some good things in the NHL and now he has to take that talent and be an everyday guy." -- Devils coach John Hynes

Flames projected lineup

Johnny Gaudreau -- Sean Monahan -- Elias Lindholm
Matthew Tkachuk -- Mikael Backlund -- Sam Bennett
Michael Frolik -- Mark Jankowski -- Austin Czarnik
Andrew Mangiapane -- Derek Ryan -- Garnet Hathaway
Mark Giordano -- TJ Brodie
Noah Hanifin -- Travis Hamonic
Oscar Fantenberg -- Rasmus Andersson
David Rittich
Mike Smith
Scratched: Curtis Lazar , Dalton Prout
Injured: James Neal (lower body), Michael Stone (blood clot), Oliver Kylington (undisclosed)

Devils projected lineup

Nick Lappin
-- Nico Hischier -- Blake Coleman
Kenny Agostino -- Travis Zajac -- Drew Stafford
Blake Pietila
-- Michael McLeod -- Nathan Bastian
Egor Yakovlev -- Kevin Rooney -- Kurtis Gabriel
Andy Greene -- Damon Severson
Will Butcher -- Sami Vatanen
Mirco Mueller -- Connor Carrick
Mackenzie Blackwood
Cory Schneider
Scratched: Steven Santini
Injured: Taylor Hall (lower body), Stefan Noesen (lower body), Pavel Zacha (upper body), Jesper Bratt (lower body), Miles Wood (fractured right ankle), John Quenneville (upper body), Kyle Palmieri (lower body)

Status report

Fantenberg, acquired in a trade with the Los Angeles Kings on Monday for a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, will make his Flames debut. ... Hall did not skate but did off-ice conditioning. … Wood is expected to be out about a month. ... Zacha practiced and is close to returning.

Stat pack

Giordano (13 goals, 46 assists) needs one point to become the fourth defenseman in NHL history aged 35 or older to score 60 points in a season (Nicklas Lidstrom, Al MacInnis, Sergei Zubov). … The Devils are 2-3-3 against the Flames since 2014-15.