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DEVILS (34-13-4) vs. WILD (27-20-4)
Head-to-Head
The Devils and Wild meet for the first time this season. Minnesota won both contests last season, including a 5-2 mark at home. Tomas Tatar (1g-1a), Dougie Hamilton (2a) and Nico Hischier (2) led the Devils in series scoring. Minnesota's Ryan Hartman has two goals and four points while Kirill Kaprizov has three points (2g-1a).
Devils Team Scope
The Devils picked up right where they left off following the All-Star break, winning back-to-back home games against Vancouver and Seattle to improve to 10-1-1 in their past 11 games. The Devils rank second in the Metro Division, four points behind Carolina.
The Devils are without All-Star Jack Hughes, who is out with an upper-body injury. He ranks third in the NHL with 35 goals to go with his team-best 67 points. Defenseman Dougie Hamilton has a six-game scoring streak for 13 points (5g-8a), including seven assists in the past four contests. Goaltender Vitek Vanecek is on a career-long 10-game winning streak.
Wild Team Scope
Minnesota is fighting for its playoff life. The club sits in the final Wild Card position with 58 points (27-20-4), earning a tie-breaker with Calgary, which has the same point total. But Minnesota has won only twice in its past eight contests, including a 5-1 setback to Vegas on Thursday.
Kirill Kaprizov leads the team in goals (29), assists (33) and points (62). Mats Zuccarello and Joel Eriksson Ek, who posted his 100th career assists against Vegas, each have 19 goals. Marc-Andre Fleury has shouldered the load in goal, going 16-12-3 on the year. Fleury, whose 972 games played is fourth all-time in NHL history, was pulled after the second period against the Golden Knights.
By the Numbers
The Devils have the best road record in the NHL with a 19-3-2 mark.
Minnesota has converted 30.7 percent (23 of 75) of power-play chances at home this season, second-best in the NHL.
Injury Updates
Devils
Bernier (hip, LTIR)
Hughes (upper-body, week-to-week)