Game 47 Preview: Penguins Vs. Devils
NEWARK, N.J. (KDKA) – The Pittsburgh Penguins will look to get back in the win column tonight when they go on the road to take on the New Jersey Devils.
On Tuesday, the Penguins saw their seven-game winning streak snapped with a 4-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres.
There was a bit of good news and bad news to come out of the game. Evgeni Malkin returned to the lineup after dealing with an upper-body injury, but Brooks Orpik left the game after the first period with a lower-body injury.
While the Penguins may not have played their best against the Sabres, they have two games left to get it back before the playoffs start.
As with the Sabres, tonight's opponent has already been eliminated from playoff contention.
The Devils were battling with the Penguins for the top spot in the Atlantic Division for most of the first month of the season.
However, injuries to Martin Brodeur and Ilya Kovalchuk sent the team into a tailspin that has landed the Devils in fourth place in the Atlantic Division.
The Devils have won three of their last four games, including a 3-2 win over Montreal on Tuesday.
Patrik Elias leads the team with 34 points (14 goals, 20 assists) in 46 games this season. He is also tied for the team lead in goals (14) with David Clarkson.
In goal, Martin Brodeur (13-9-7, 2.22 GAA, .901 save percentage) has been on his game of late, having allowed only eight goals over the last four games.
However, former Penguin Johan Hedberg (5-9-3, 2.73 GAA, .886 save percentage) is expected to be in goal tonight.
Against the Penguins, Hedberg is 3-5-1 with a 2.84 GAA and .900 save percentage.
For Pittsburgh, it is unknown if Orpik will be available tonight. Sidney Crosby (jaw), Paul Martin (hand) and James Neal (concussion) are also continuing to recover from their injuries.
While Malkin did not score against Buffalo, he was flying around the ice and helped to set up Jarome Iginla's power play goal in the third period.
Chris Kunitz scored his 22nd goal of the season in the loss to Buffalo, which extended his team-lead to two over Pascal Dupuis.
In goal, Marc-Andre Fleury (22-7-0, 2.35 GAA, .917 save percentage) saw his personal four-game winning streak snapped on Tuesday.
Against the Devils, Fleury is 15-19-4 with a 2.56 GAA and .913 save percentage.
The puck is set to drop at 7:30 p.m. and you can watch the game on Root Sports.
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