Capitals at Devils preview

CAPITALS (2-0-1) at DEVILS (1-0-0)
7 p.m. ET; MSG+, NBCSWA, NHL.TV

Copley, acquired by the Capitals with defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk in a trade with the St. Louis Blues on Feb. 27, 2017, is 0-1-0 in two NHL games. He played 41 games with Hershey in the American Hockey League last season. His previous NHL start was Jan. 21, 2017, for the Blues against the Winnipeg Jets.
Goalie Keith Kinkaid will start for the Devils in their home opener. New Jersey will play the first of four straight at home after opening the season with a 5-2 win against the Edmonton Oilers in the 2018 NHL Global Series Challenge at Scandinavium in Gothenburg, Sweden, on Oct. 6.

Players to watch

Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov has seven points (three goals, four assists) in his past three games.
Devils forwards Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac each scored two goals in the season opener.

They said it

"I haven't seen a guy who can play with the puck like he can. [Oilers forward Connor] McDavid's got the speed and can break you down with speed. You've got some of the other players with great shots, or good passers, great captains. But no one can carry the puck like [Kuznetsov], I don't think." -- Capitals forward T.J. Oshie on Evgeny Kuznetsov
"Against Edmonton we skated well, were tenacious on the puck on offense and defense. Sometimes when you see that you think it comes easy, but then you look at the film and you see how hard we were working. So it's important to continue to do that and evolve our game in all areas and try to get better." -- Devils defenseman Andy Greene

Capitals projected lineup

Alex Ovechkin -- Evgeny Kuznetsov -- Brett Connolly
Jakub Vrana -- Nicklas Backstrom -- T.J. Oshie
Andre Burakovsky -- Lars Eller -- Devante Smith-Pelly
Dmitrij Jaskin -- Nic Dowd -- Chandler Stephenson
Dmitry Orlov -- Matt Niskanen
Michal Kempny -- John Carlson
Brooks Orpik -- Christian Djoos
Pheonix Copley
Braden Holtby
Scratched:Madison Bowey, Nathan Walker
Injured:Travis Boyd (lower body)
Suspended: Tom Wilson

Devils projected lineup

Taylor Hall -- Nico Hischier -- Kyle Palmieri
Marcus Johansson -- Pavel Zacha -- Stefan Noesen
Miles Wood -- Travis Zajac -- John Quenneville
Blake Coleman -- Brian Boyle -- Jean-Sebastien Dea
Mirco Mueller -- Sami Vatanen
Andy Greene -- Damon Severson
Will Butcher -- Ben Lovejoy
Keith Kinkaid
Eddie Lack
Scratched: Steven Santini, Eric Gryba, Drew Stafford
Injured: Jesper Bratt (jaw), Cory Schneider (hip)

Status report

Bratt continues to work out off the ice and is expected to resume skating shortly, according to Devils coach Jon Hynes, who also said he will know more about Schneider's playing availability in the next 3-4 days. ... New Jersey will use the same lines it used against Edmonton.

Stat pack

The Capitals have set a team record for most goals (18) through the first three games of a season (previously 17 in 1988-89). ... Zajac needs one goal to move into a tie for sixth place on the Devils all-time list with Pat Verbeek (170).