Devils and Red Wings meet in afternoon matchup | PREVIEW

THE SHOVEL

The New Jersey Devils suffered their fourth shutout loss of the season after losing their match against the St. Louis Blues. It’s an interesting trend for the team, whose last four losses were all shutouts. Timo Meier served his one-game suspension against the Blues and will return to the lineup against Detroit.

Based on Thursday’s practice, there will be lineup changes in New Jersey as Meier returns to his regular spot with Nico Hischier and Stefan Noesen. Paul Cotter will rejoin Erik Haula and Dawson Mercer, while Kurtis MacDermid will rejoin the lineup with Justin Dowling and Tomas Tatar on the fourth line.

The Devils returned forward Nolan Foote to the Utica Comets on Thursday morning.

The duo of Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen have led the way in net this season, with Markstrom starting the last three of the team’s four games. Allen’s last start was last Saturday at Washington, when he played his 200th career game.

The Detroit Red Wings are completing a three-game home stretch against the Devils and most recently picked up a 2-1 overtime win against the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. The Red Wings want to take a 3-0 lead in their home game, with only New Jersey standing in their way. The Red Wings have played some low-scoring hockey lately and the margin for error is very slim as four of their last five games have all been decided by a single goal.

WHO IS HOT

Devil: Nico Hischier scored the first hat trick of his career on Monday night against the Nashville Predators. He leads the team with 13 goals and is third in points with 24 behind Jack Hughes (25) and Jesper Bratt (28).

Red wings: Lucas Raymond is really starting to heat up for the Wings after a slower start to the year. Not only did he score the overtime game-winner against Calgary, but he also has points in five straight games and goals in four straight games. While he has 10 points in the last 10 games (5g-5a)

INJURIES

Devil: Bastian (jaw, IR), Lazar (knee, IR), Hatakka (shoulder)

Red wings: Kane (upper body, everyday life), Lyon (unknown, everyday life)

REGULAR SEASON RESULTS