Offense meets defense at Ball Arena on Wednesday as the high-volume shooting New Jersey Devils (39-15-5) head to face the suffocating goaltending of the Colorado Avalanche (34-19-5). New Jersey is coming off a 7-0 win over the Flyers on Saturday. Seven players found the net for the Devils.
Jonas Siegenthaler scored and provided two assists to lead the team in scoring. Akira Schmid had a great performance with 23 saves to record the shutout. Colorado won their sixth straight game, beating the Golden Knights 3-0 on Monday.
Mikko Rantanen was the leading goal scorer for the Avalanche, netting twice. Alexandar Georgiev earned his second shutout of the season with 31 saves.
HEAD TO HEAD
The Devils won the first meeting between the teams this season, a 1-0 victory in October. Jack Hughes scored New Jersey’s only goal. Vitek Vanecek saved 24 shots to earn the shutout win.
FACING OFF
New Jersey is averaging 3.51 goals per game for the season, fifth in the NHL, and they are taking on an Avalanche team that is allowing 2.66 goals a game (7th).
Meanwhile, Colorado has found the net 3.12 times a game on average, 17th in the league, and the Devils are holding opponents to 2.63 goals per game (5th).
New Jersey averages more shots (34.3) than most teams in the league, ranking fourth. Colorado has been one of the league’s better shot-stopping teams, ranking No. 2 with a team save percentage of .921%.
The Avalanche’s 22.99% power play percentage ranks ninth in the league, while the Devils are 22nd with a conversion rate of 19.88%. When it comes to penalty killing, New Jersey has the league’s 11th-ranked PK% at 81.46%, while Colorado is 19th at 77.53%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 74 points this season, ninth-most in the NHL, Hughes is the top skater for the Devils. He is among the league leaders with 36 goals (6th) and has added 38 assists. In the net, Vanecek (25-6-3) is New Jersey’s top goaltender.
He has a 2.37 GAA and a .913% save percentage.Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon lead the Avalanche in scoring with 71 points apiece. Rantanen has 40 goals (4th) and 31 assists, while MacKinnon has 22 goals and 49 assists (7th) in 47 games.
Pavel Francouz (7-7-1) has the best goals against average for Colorado at 2.53. He has a save percentage of .919%. Georgiev (25-12-4) has played the most games in net for the Avalanche this season. He has a 2.63 GAA and a .919% save percentage.
HOME AND AWAY
New Jersey is 21-4-3 away from home this season. Colorado has won three in a row at Ball Arena this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
Colorado Avalanche (-115)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
