News, notes and projected lineups for the Devils ahead of the penultimate game of the season against the Carolina Hurricanes.
RALEIGH — Good morning from North Carolina. It's a beautiful spring day in the south. The flowers are blooming, the birds are chirping and the Carolina Hurricanes are in position to clinch their first playoff berth in a decade.
And Devils' fans thought a five-year drought was bad.
The 'Canes will clinch a playoff spot if they defeat the Devils in regulation or overtime and the Montreal Canadiens lose to the Capitals in any fashion. Or, if they beat the Devils in a shootout and the Habs lose to the Capitals in regulation.
Cory Schneider will make his final start of the season Thursday night at PNC Arena. The last time he was in this barn things went pretty well for him in the final 39:30. The first 30 seconds of the game decided the whole thing in a 2-1 loss back in November.
The Devils are anticipating a playoff-type atmosphere at PNC Arena. The Canadiens need New Jersey to hold off the Hurricanes in order to remain in the playoff race but the home team here is eager for a return to the prominence.
This is the type of game that will show what some of these more inexperienced rookies on the New Jersey side of things are made of.
"We talk about evaluation games, this is one where we're going to take a lot of stock into it," Hynes said. "They're fighting for a wild card spot, they're a playoff team, they've been one of the best teams in the league through the last 20 games. It's a hard building to play in.
"Lots of times you guys as me, 'Has this guy taken a step?' Let's see tonight when there's no time and space and you're playing against a team that's dialed in and they're looking for the postseason."
But that was before the Devils' Masterton Trophy nominee figured out some key elements of his game. He's been a different goalie since an ab injury and a subsequent stint in Binghamton, having gone 6-7-3 with a .924 save percentage and a 2.42 GAA in 16 games over the second half of the season.
The Devils feel this is a good end point for a turbulent season.
The entire Devils' squad plus the front office brass is in Carolina for the penultimate game of the season. They had a team dinner on Wednesday night at a steakhouse and we even had a Taylor Hall sighting at the morning skate.
The Devils may not have had the season they wanted to expected but they're proud of the culture that remained through tough times.
"We still believe we have a strong group," Hynes said. "We think it's important to be together on this trip, whether guys can play or not play. We'll have some team functions and activities and make sure we're going into the offseason as a connected group. That's what we believe in."
Things are winding down for New Jersey but they still have a chance to play the spoiler role they were enjoying playing a few months ago.
Two more to go for the 2018-19 campaign. Here are the lineups.