{"id":692972,"date":"2026-10-22T21:42:23","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T21:42:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/692972\/"},"modified":"2026-10-22T21:42:23","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T21:42:23","slug":"new-jersey-devils-gameday-preview-homestand-continues-against-ducks-the-hockey-writers-new-jersey-devils","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/692972\/","title":{"rendered":"New Jersey Devils Gameday Preview: Homestand Continues Against Ducks &#8211; The Hockey Writers &#8211; New Jersey Devils"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Thursday, Oct. 22, the <a href=\"https:\/\/thehockeywriters.com\/new-jersey-devils\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">New Jersey Devils<\/a> will host the Anaheim Ducks in the second matchup of their three-game homestand. Tonight will also mark the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/devils\/news\/10-takeaways-10-21-26\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">first-ever K-Pop Night<\/a> at Prudential Center, where fans can enjoy special merchandise, in-game content, and themed music throughout the evening.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Devils are looking to put together a win streak, following a 4-3 victory over the Colorado Avalanche. Meanwhile, the Ducks are trying to snap a four-game losing skid, most recently falling 3-2 to the New York Islanders on Tuesday night.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This marks a perfect opportunity for the Devils to keep the momentum going and climb the Metropolitan Division standings.<\/p>\n<p>Storylines<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thehockeywriters.com\/docs\/arseni-gritsyuk\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Arseny Gritsyuk<\/a> remains a player to watch, with five points in his last five games. He\u2019s been in the top six alongside Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt for four-straight contests, recording three goals, 11 shots, and four points within that time frame. Gritsyuk kicked things off with a goal against the New York Rangers, which put the Devils up 4-0. He also opened the scoring against the Washington Capitals, followed by a highlight-worthy backhand goal against the Avalanche.<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"802\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Devils-Celebrate-3-1200x802.jpg\" alt=\"New Jersey Devils Celebrate\" class=\"wp-image-1576547\"  \/>New Jersey Devils right wing Arseny Gritsyuk celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the Minnesota Wild (John Jones-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the fifth-straight game, Brenden Dillon is expected to be a <a href=\"https:\/\/thehockeywriters.com\/devils-news-rumors-dillon-scratched-evangelista-brown-return-more\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">healthy scratch<\/a>. The veteran defenseman has not been in the lineup since Oct. 12. He averaged 14:26 of ice time per game and had yet to record his first point of 2026-27. Dillon has tallied four blocked shots, 10 hits, and one shot across five games this season.<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">No changes for #NJDevils as they head into their matchup against the Ducks tonight. <\/p>\n<p>Lombardi and Dillon are out.<\/p>\n<p>Nico Daws took the first line rep, so I imagine he\u2019s starting. We\u2019ll see if he\u2019s first off. https:\/\/t.co\/prHNZCmPou<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/amandacstein\/status\/2113279734113349777?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow\">October 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thehockeywriters.com\/docs\/nico-daws\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Nico Daws<\/a> will receive his fourth start in net and is on the hunt for his second win of the season. He faced some difficulties early on, but led the team to a 7-1 victory over the Rangers, earning a .947 save percentage (SV%) \u2014 his highest so far in 2026-27.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As we approach the 10-game mark, the Devils have struck first in their last four games, and are 3-1-0 when doing so. They\u2019ve outshot every single one of their opponents this season, but it\u2019s crucial that offense establishes and maintains an early lead.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another key to success will be depth scoring and special-teams dominance. Secondary scorers such Evan Rodrigues and <a href=\"https:\/\/thehockeywriters.com\/docs\/jesper-boqvist\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Jesper Boqvist<\/a> have been important in the Devils\u2019 recent success, contributing stability to their bottom six.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Their power play, on the other hand, has been struggling lately, with just one goal in their last three games. The Devils are now <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxsports.com\/nhl\/team-stats?category=powerplays&amp;sort=t_pp_pct&amp;season=2026&amp;seasonType=reg&amp;sortOrder=desc\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">six-for-30<\/a> this season, which puts them 20th overall in the league. Unfortunately, their penalty kill has fared even worse, surrendering seven goals across 24 penalties. Against the Ducks, the Devils should focus on a stronger net-front presence on the power play, while also simplifying puck movement on the penalty kill.<\/p>\n<p>Team Stats<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">New Jersey Devils<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Season Record: 5-4-0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Top Scorers:<\/p>\n<p>Jack Hughes \u2014 2 goals (G), 7 assists (A), 9 points (P)<\/p>\n<p>Jesper Bratt \u2014 2 G, 5 A, 7 P<\/p>\n<p>Nico Hischier \u2014 4 G, 2 A, 6 P<\/p>\n<p>Arseny Gritsyuk \u2014 4 G, 2 A, 6 P<\/p>\n<p>Luke Evangelista \u2014 3 G, 2 A, 5 P<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Goalie Stats:<\/p>\n<p>Nico Daws \u2014 1-2-0, 3.38 goals against average (GAA), .857 save percentage (SV%)<\/p>\n<p>Jake Allen \u2014 4-2-0, 3.15 GAA, .883 SV% <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Anaheim Ducks<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Season Record: 4-5-0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Top Scorers:<\/p>\n<p>Leo Carlsson \u2014 2 G, 9 A, 11 P<\/p>\n<p>Beckett Sennecke \u2014 5 G, 3 A, 8 P<\/p>\n<p>Mikael Granlund \u2014 2 G, 6 A, 8 P<\/p>\n<p>Jackson LaCombe \u2014 1 G, 6 A, 7 P<\/p>\n<p>Cutter Gauthier \u2014 2 G, 3 A, 5 P<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Goalie Stats:<\/p>\n<p>Ville Husso \u2014 1-1-0, 3.09 GAA, .885 SV%<\/p>\n<p>Lukas Dostal \u2014 3-4-0, 3.16 GAA, .881 SV%<\/p>\n<p>Projected Lineup<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">(<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/news\/nhl-lineup-projections-2026-27-season\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Subject to change<\/a> before puck drop)<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">New Jersey Devils<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Timo Meier \u2014 Nico Hischier \u2014 Luke Evangelista<br \/>Arseny Gritsyuk \u2014 Jack Hughes \u2014 Jesper Bratt<br \/>Anthony Mantha \u2014 Evan Rodrigues \u2014 Dawson Mercer<br \/>Jesper Boqvist \u2014 Cody Glass \u2014 Connor Brown<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Luke Hughes \u2014 Brett Pesce<br \/>Jonas Siegenthaler \u2014 Dougie Hamilton<br \/>Declan Chisholm \u2014 Johnathan Kovacevic<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nico Daws<br \/>Jake Allen<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Scratched: Brenden Dillon, Amadeus Lombardi, Remi Poirier<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Injured: Nick Bjugstad<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Anaheim Ducks<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Alex Killorn \u2014 Leo Carlsson \u2014 Cutter Gauthier<br \/>Nikita Nesterenko \u2014 Mikael Granlund \u2014 Beckett Sennecke<br \/>Jeff Malott \u2014 Roger McQueen \u2014 Frank Vatrano<br \/>A.J. Greer \u2014 Tim Washe \u2014 Sam Colangelo<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Jackson LaCombe \u2014 Drew Helleson<br \/>Tyson Hinds \u2014 Noah Warren<br \/>Pavel Mintyukov \u2014 Nick Jensen<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ville Husso<br \/>Lukas Dostal<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Scratched: Tristan Luneau, Judd Caulfield, Nikita Klepov<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Injured: Troy Terry, Ian Moore, Ryan Poehling<\/p>\n<p>Next Up for the Devils<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Devils will conclude their homestand on Saturday, Oct. 24, facing the Los Angeles Kings in a matinee matchup. Puck drop is scheduled for 3:30 PM ET.<\/p>\n<p class=\"thw-substack-cta__label\">Free Newsletter<\/p>\n<p class=\"thw-substack-cta__title\">\n        Get New Jersey Devils coverage delivered to your inbox        <\/p>\n<p class=\"thw-substack-cta__desc\">In-depth analysis, breaking news, and insider takes &#8211; free.<\/p>\n<p>        <a href=\"https:\/\/thehockeywriters.substack.com\/s\/new-jersey-devils\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" class=\"thw-substack-cta__btn\"><br \/>\n        Subscribe Free \u2192<br \/>\n        <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"On Thursday, Oct. 22, the New Jersey Devils will host the Anaheim Ducks in the second matchup of&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":692973,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5109],"tags":[25554,1770,201,5,576,151,5185,5184,4,11154],"class_list":["post-692972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-jersey-devils","tag-arseny-gritsyuk","tag-brenden-dillon","tag-devils","tag-hockey","tag-new-jersey","tag-new-jersey-devils","tag-newjersey","tag-newjerseydevils","tag-nhl","tag-nico-daws"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/117486744309101389","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/692972","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=692972"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/692972\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/692973"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=692972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=692972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=692972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}