Game Preview #79: Pittsburgh Penguins @ New Jersey Devils

• The Matchup: Pittsburgh Penguins (40-22-16) @ New Jersey Devils (40-35-3)
• The Time: 7:00 pm EST
• The Broadcast: MSGSN, Devils Hockey Radio

Last Devils Game

After Tom Fitzgerald deservedly lost his job on Monday, fans wondered if the team might come out with some new found pep in their step for their Tuesday night game against the Philadelphia Flyers. After all, as of Tuesday afternoon, the Devils still mathematically had a chance to possibly make the playoffs with a regulation win. As with much of this season however, the Devils, or more accurately, Jacob Markstrom came out flat and disappointed the fans, letting up a goal on the second shot he faced, leading the Devils to an eventual 5-1 loss. The loss against the Flyers coupled with a victory that same night by Ottawa means that the Devils have been officially eliminated from playoff contention.

Jacob Markstrom started in net for the Devils, his second game in a row, and did what he has done so well all season. He showed yet again how consistently inconsistent he is in his level of play. Coming off of his first shutout of the season against the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday, he let up 2 goals less than 4 minutes into the first period. As he’s done numerous times this season, he dug a hole for the Devils early, making their path to victory much more difficult than any supposed NHL starting goalie ever should do this frequently. Trevor Zegras scored two goals in the first period to put the Flyers up 2-0 before Cody Glass got the Devils to within 1 at 12:12 of the first period. Markstrom would strike again in the 2nd period however, allowing 2 more goals to Tyson Foerster less than 5 minutes into the 2nd period, to effectively end any chance the Devils had at a comeback and the playoffs. Nick Seeler scored an empty net goal in the third period, and that was all she wrote for the night and 2025-2026.

Last Penguins Game

Way back on Sunday, the Penguins defeated the Florida Panthers by a score of 5-2. Sidney “I never seem to get old or slow down” Crosby showed yet again, that Father Time has not come for him yet, scoring 1 goal to go with 2 assists on the night. He’s up to 72 points in 66 games this season and at age 38, appears to have a lot left in the tank. The Penguins have not officially locked up a playoff spot yet, but the victory, their 2nd in a row against the Panthers and 4th in their last 5 games, helped give them a comfortable cushion. Now at 96 points on the season, they sit comfortably in 2nd place in the Metro, 4 points ahead of the Flyers and 6 points ahead of 4th place Columbus Blue Jackets. As an additional note here, with the Penguins victory over the Panthers on Saturday, the Florida Panthers were officially eliminated from playoff contention.

Arturs Silovs started in net for Pittsburgh, the 2nd game in a row, and his second win in 2 nights against Florida. Florida was never in command of the game at any point. The Penguins took a 3-1 lead in the first period on goals from Elmer Soderblom, Sidney Crosby, and Rickard Rakell. Rakell added his second goal of the night in the 2nd period to send the two teams into the 3rd period with the Penguins up 4-1. Bryan Rust officially turned out the lights and shut the door with his 28th goal to put the Penguins up 5-1, and Florida scored a meaningless power play goal at 14:15 of the third to end the game at 5-2.

Injuries, Roster for Tonight, Yada, Yada, Yada.

With the Devils now officially eliminated from playoff contention, one would assume that the Devils, or more specifically, Sheldon Keefe, will not feel the need to the start Jacob Markstrom in back to back games. Will Jake Allen split the remaining 4 starts with Markstrom? Will the big club give anyone else from the AHL a chance to show what they bring to the table as they play out the final 4 (no, not that final four)? Time will tell. I am sure though, that I hope the final four games of this season, represent the last few games we are subjected to seeing Jacob Markstrom in net for the Devils.

Grimace’s Prediction and 2025-2026 Record Tracker

Grimace wanted to be here, but like the Devils will be on April 15th, he’s playing golf. We had a custom set made for him, and maybe if he’s in a good mood, he’ll let me share a picture on here. He did ask me to relay a message to all of you, which I’ll share here. “Dear fellow Devils Nation members, I’m sorry I let you down with my predictions and that I stunk as bad as the Devils did this season. I promise to try and do better next season. For now though, FORE!”

Grimace’s 2025-2026 Season Prediction record currently stands at 13-14-0.

Your Take

As I’ve written many times over the past few weeks, “what’s left to say” at this point. The Devils have been eliminated from the playoffs for the 11th time in the last 14 seasons. The fact that any fans are surprised by the frustration of other fans, when looking at that stat, will never stop being confusing to me. I suppose if anyone is looking for something interesting to focus on over these final four games, here you go. Jack Hughes currently sits at 72 points on the season. His current 2nd highest point total in a single season is 74 points, back in 2023-2024. If he can manage 3 points in his final 4 games, he can have a new 2nd best point total of his career. Yay, I guess. Feel free to leave your thoughts and comments below and thanks for reading!

In a shameless bit of non hockey related self promotion (approved by Chris – thanks Chris), I wanted to plug my brand new podcast on here, if any of you are interested in listening. We have a light hearted, fun discussion about any movies, music or video games mostly from the 1980s and 1990s. Please feel free to listen to us on any of the formats below and any feedback is welcome (positive and negative). Also, please follow us and subscribe, even if you think we stink. ????

YouTube

Apple Podcast

Spotify