On Tuesday, March 31, the New Jersey Devils are getting ready to take on the New York Rangers for the third time this season. All three games between these two Hudson River rivals will take place in March. The two previous games were on March 7 and 18. In both games, the Devils won 6-3.
While another 6-3 victory is not guaranteed, a win of any nature would be great for the Devils. Here are three keys to ensure their win over the Rangers.Â
Give Jack Hughes the PuckÂ
When the Devils hosted the Rangers, Jack Hughes recorded his second hat trick of the season, also adding an assist; half of the goals the Devils scored in this game were thanks to Hughes. At Madison Square Garden, he scored another goal and recorded an assist. In two games against the Rangers, Hughes recorded six points.Â
New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes (Thomas Salus-Imagn Images)
In his last five games, Hughes has nine points, four of which were recorded in the Devils’ last game against the Chicago Blackhawks. He currently leads the Devils in points with 63, while his linemate, Jesper Bratt, sits just below him in second place with 61 points. Even playing 21 fewer games, Hughes has rocketed himself back to the top of the leaderboard.
There is no denying that Hughes is an incredible goal scorer and has a great eye for scoring chances, especially against the Rangers this season. He is the Devils’ best chance of a high-scoring game tonight.Â
Keep Special Teams StrongÂ
Five of the Devils’ 12 goals against the Rangers this season were scored on the power play, including two from Nico Hischier. The Devils currently have the 12th-best power play in the league with a 22.3% success rate. The Rangers don’t have a great record this season, but they do have a strong power play with a 24.3% success rate, currently in fifth place overall. However, they have a zero percent success rate against the Devils this season.Â
Related: 3 Key Factors in Devils’ End-of-Season Success
Despite giving the Rangers seven extra-man opportunities, the Devils kept their penalty kill strong. Across the league, the Devils have a worse penalty kill than their power play, sitting at 15th overall with a 79.5% success rate. More importantly, they have a better penalty kill than the Rangers, who have a 78.7% success rate.Â
If this game gets chippy as the other two did, there will likely be penalties awarded to both sides. It is in the Devils’ best interest to make sure they keep their special teams strong, as this could be the difference maker in this game.Â
Play Markstrom in NetÂ
In both of the Devils’ previous contests against the Rangers, they played Jacob Markstrom in net. In their first game against New York, he made 17 saves on 20 shots and recorded a save percentage (SV%) of .850. In the second game, he made 15 saves on 18 shots and recorded a SV% of .833.Â
While these SV% aren’t anywhere close to his best this season, Markstrom still did a great job of keeping the Devils in the game. Yes, he allowed three goals in each game against the Rangers, but the Devils had a stronger offensive game, so this didn’t matter much in the end. Let’s hope the Devils can go on another offensive tear as they did in the two games prior, while Markstrom keeps New Jersey afloat between the pipes.Â
Devils Need this Win to Build Confidence
Although they are far out of a playoff spot, each win builds more confidence for the 2025-26 Devils team. This game between the Rangers and Devils will take place at 7 PM ET at Madison Square Garden this evening.Â
