Game #2 Preview: New Jersey Devils vs Buffalo Sabres

The Essentials:

Matchup: The New Jersey Devils vs. Buffalo Sabres

Date: October 5, 2024

Time: 10:00 AM ET

Broadcast: NHLN, MSGSN, MSG-B

Listen: Devils Hockey Network

Last Devils Game: On October 4, 2024, the Devils defeated the Buffalo Sabres by a score of 4-1. See Jackson’s recap here.

The Lineups:

It is no secret that these rosters are basically locked for this trip to Prague. I expect the Devils and Sabres to maintain the same lineups as Friday’s game except for the goalies. Jake Allen will likely be the starter for the Devils and Devon Levi for the Sabres. Both head coaches will want to give their teams time to shake off any remaining rust and reestablish chemistry before addressing any potential issues. See Buffalo’s lines from Friday’s game below:

Offense

Peterka-Thompson-Tuch

Benson-Cozens-Quinn

Greenway-McLeod-Zucker

Malenstyn-Lafferty-NAK

Defense

Dahlin-Jokiharju

Byram-Power

Samuelsson-Clifton

(per Lance Lysowski and Natural Stat Trick)

Matchup to Watch:

Tage Thompson was the Sabres’ leading scorer in 2023-2024, but the top line struggled in game one. The Sabres’ line of JJ Peterka, Tage Thompson, and Alex Tuch posted a Corsi For Percentage Relative (CF% Rel) of -18.23 (per Natural Stat Trick at 5-on-5). I’m not a big stats or analytics guy, but that is not good. Not surprisingly, the Devils played their top defensive pairing of Dougie Hamilton and Brenden Dillon against the Sabres’ top line for most of the game. It is nice to have a healthy Dougie Hamilton back! Both defensively, matching up with a big guy like Thompson, and offensively by getting shots on net through traffic. Will the Hamilton – Dillon duo have the same success in game two?

Devil to Watch

Head coach Sheldon Keefe showed a lot of confidence in Seamus Casey in his regular season debut. Casey was given the opportunity to quarterback the second power play unit in the final seconds of the first power play. I’d like to see the rookie get the same opportunity on Saturday. I thought he played well at both ends of the ice on Friday and can’t wait to see what he can do once he feels comfortable at the NHL level.

Adjustment for Game Two

The issue I have chosen is minor and it may just be me, but the holding penalties drive me crazy. The Devils had three holding penalties and a “slashing” call on Erik Haula. That was not a slash, but that is a separate conversation. There is no reason to take a hand off the stick to grab at an opposing player. I have flashbacks of my youth hockey coach yelling to move your feet instead of reaching or grabbing. As I said, it is minor and the penalty kill played well, but I hope they eliminate the holding penalties moving forward.

The Devils had everything go their way on Friday and let’s hope that continues.

Your Thoughts

What will you be watching for? Will Hamilton and Dillon get the best of the matchup against Thompson’s line again? What did you think of Casey’s play in game one? Thank you for reading and GO DEVILS!