James Nichols
The New Jersey Devils, now 2-1-0 after a win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday, open their home schedule at Prudential Center against the defending Stanley Cup Champions, the Florida Panthers, who stand at 3-1-0 with a 0-1-0 road record. They’re certainly clawing their way through the league without Sasha Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk.
READ MORE: After Road Gauntlet, Devils’ Biggest Test is Still Ahead of Them
Sheldon Keefe’s group has shown offensive depth with Jesper Bratt (2G, 2A) and Luke Hughes (0G, 4A) leading the way, but goaltending adjustments loom with Jacob Markstrom sidelined. The Panthers, paced by Anton Lundell (2G, 2A) and Brad Marchand (2G, 2A), are looking to rebound from their sole loss as they hit the road.
Let’s dive into tonight’s matchup.
What to Know vs. Panthers
— New Jersey logged a 2-0-1 record against Florida last season and outscored the Cats 11-4.
— Jesper Bratt (3g-2a) and Nico Hischier (1g-4a) led the Devils with five points against Florida last season.
2025-26 vs. Panthers
10/16/25 TBD Prudential Center
11/20/25 TBD Amerant Bank Arena
3/3/26 TBD Prudential Center
Devils vs. Panthers
All-time Record: 60-37-7-8
All-time Home Record: 33-18-3-3
All-time Road Record: 27-19-4-5
Projected Devils Lineup*
Forwards
Ondrej Palat – Jack Hughes – Jesper Bratt
Timo Meier – Nico Hischier – Dawson Mercer
Arseny Gritsyuk – Cody Glass – Connor Brown
Paul Cotter – Luke Glendening – Brian Halonen
Defensemen
Luke Hughes – Brett Pesce
Dougie Hamilton – Jonas Siegenthaler
Brenden Dillon – Simon Nemec
Goaltenders
Nico Daws
Jake Allen
*Lineup subject to change
Current Injuries: Stefan Noesen (Lower-body, out since Oct. 9), Johnathan Kovacevic (Lower-body, out since Oct. 9), Marc McLaughlin (Upper-body, out since Oct. 9), Seamus Casey (Lower-body, out since Oct. 9), Evgenii Dadonov (hand fracture, out since Oct. 9), Jacob Markstrom (lower-injury, out since Oct. 15).
2025-26 Total Man-Games Lost: 11
Note: Nico Daws recalled to replace Markstrom
Projected Panthers Lineup*
Forwards
Mackie Samoskevich – Sam Bennett – Brad Marchand
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe – Evan Rodrigues – Jesper Boqvist
A.J. Greer – Luke Kunin – Jonah Gadjovich
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Seth Jones
Uvis Balinskis – Jeff Petry
Goaltenders
Daniil Tarasov
Sergei Bobrovsky
*Lineup subject to change
How to Watch the Devils Game — 7:00 P.M. ET
Watch: MSGSN
Next Up
Sat., Oct. 18 Vs EDM 3:30 P.M. E.T.
Tue., Oct. 21 At TOR 7:00 P.M. E.T.
Wed., Oct. 22 Vs MIN 7:00 P.M. E.T.
Fri., Oct. 24 At OTT 7:00 P.M. E.T.
Sat., Oct. 25 Vs ANA 1:00 P.M. E.T.
