Penguins at Devils preview

PENGUINS (29-21-3) at DEVILS (26-16-8)
7 p.m. ET; MSG+ 2, ATTSN-PT, NHL.TV

Crosby, the Penguins captain, has 22 points (three goals, 19 assists) in his past 11 games, and needs one goal for his 400th in the League. Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak had 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in a 12-game streak from Nov. 22-Dec. 18, and Tampa Bay Lightning center Tyler Johnson had 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists) in a 12-game streak from Dec. 2-31.
Pittsburgh will try for its fifth consecutive win, which would be its longest winning streak this season. Forward Zachary Aston-Reese, a native of Staten Island, New York, is expected to make his NHL debut after being recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League on Saturday.
The Devils, who eye their third straight win, are third in the Metropolitan Division with 60 points, one point behind the second-place Penguins, with three games in hand.

Players to watch

Penguins center Evgeni Malkin has 10 points (seven goals, three assists) in his past three games, and 21 points (14 goals, seven assists) in his past 11.
Devils forward Taylor Hall has 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in a nine-game point streak.

They said it

"I haven't been around [a power play] as dynamic as this one. I think what makes [us] unique is their instinctive play. [The coaches] try hard to stay out of their way. I mean that sincerely. Coaching power plays, if you're not careful, you can over-coach a bit." -- Penguins coach Mike Sullivan
"The games are going to get more intense, more emotional, from this point forward. … They have a great power play so if we stay disciplined, we'll give ourselves a chance." -- Devils center Travis Zajac

Penguins projected lineup

Dominik Simon -- Sidney Crosby -- Bryan Rust
Carl Hagelin -- Evgeni Malkin --
Zachary Aston-Reese
Jake Guentzel -- Riley Sheahan -- Phil Kessel
Tom Kuhnhackl -- Carter Rowney -- Ryan Reaves
Brian Dumoulin -- Kris Letang
Olli Maatta -- Justin Schultz
Ian Cole -- Jamie Oleksiak
Casey DeSmith
Matt Murray
Scratched:Chad Ruhwedel, Matt Hunwick
Injured: Conor Sheary (lower body), Patric Hornqvist (lower body)

Devils projected lineup

Taylor Hall -- Nico Hischier -- Jesper Bratt
Miles Wood -- Pavel Zacha -- Kyle Palmieri
Blake Coleman -- Travis Zajac -- Stefan Noesen
Drew Stafford -- Brian Boyle
Andy Greene -- Sami Vatanen
John Moore -- Damon Severson
Will Butcher -- Ben Lovejoy
Mirco Mueller
Keith Kinkaid
Ken Appleby
Scratched:John Quenneville
Injured: Marcus Johansson (undisclosed), Cory Schneider (groin), Brian Gibbons (thumb)

Status report

Hornqvist is expected to miss one game after colliding with Washington Capitals defenseman Brooks Orpik at 2:37 of the third period in the Penguins' 7-4 win Friday. ... The Devils are expected to dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen.

Stat pack

Kessel has eight points (two goals, six assists) in a four-game point streak. … Kinkaid is 4-1-1 with a 2.45 goals-against average in his past six starts.