- Here’s what I’ll be watching for in Preseason Game #2 tonight against MTL:
I’m interested to see how these two former Habs play in their first game back to the Bell Centre:- Kovacevic
- Kovacevic's pairing with Siegenthaler is seriously being looked at as an opening night pairing, as this is their second straight game together. They have an opportunity to make the coaching staff feel real comfortable with them if they can put together another strong showing tonight.
- Allen
- Based on game one, I expect Allen to get two periods of action tonight like Markstrom did vs. NYI, leaving Dawsy with a second chance to come in cold! Tough cards to be dealt if this is the case again for him. That being said, with the team leaving for Prague in a short time, maybe Allen gets a full game tonight, and Markstrom gets a full game tomorrow. Regardless, Allen should be raring to go tonight; I expect an excellent performance from him. (And yes, the Devils will need him to bring their best, as they are not sending up an NHL, star-studded lineup, with all due respect!!!)
- Cotter - Lazar - Bastian
- Cotter - Lazar - Bastian will get their second straight game as a line together. Will they stick to their balanced Meat n' Mitts brand of hockey from two nights ago? Or, will they try to do too much and force things offensively because they only brought their Mitts across the border!? All jokes aside, I’m curious to see how disciplined they can be to remain true to their identity with the extra ice time and responsibility.
Foote and Labanc
NJD#29 and NJD#62 need to have impact games. With Mercer now signed, there are simply too few FW spots available — if any — to have even one bad night.
Hatakka - Nemec
The Hatakka/Nemec pairing will also be closely watched and analyzed by the NJD coaching staff for a potential opening-night pairing. “Can Hatakka hang with Nemec?” will be the main question being pondered tonight.
Casey's Preseason Debut
Lastly, I’m excited to get my first look at Casey effortlessly skating around in his first career preseason game. I’m intrigued to see if he ends up getting some PP1 QB minutes as the game goes on.
-Sal
