New Jersey Devils Gameday Preview: Closing Out the West Coast Road Trip in Utah vs. Mammoth – The Hockey Writers –

On Friday, Dec. 19, the New Jersey Devils are preparing to close out their West Coast road trip against the Utah Mammoth. The Devils kicked off the road trip against the Vegas Golden Knights, beating them 2-1 in a shootout. With such a short trip out west, the Devils will try to keep their winning ways before they head back to New Jersey. 

Related: Dear Santa: New Jersey Devils’ 2025-26 Wish List

This is the first game back after a three-game road trip for the Mammoth. They just beat the Detroit Red Wings before they returned to Utah. The Mammoth will want to try to continue this luck in front of their home crowd.

Devils Storylines

The Devils held a practice at the Mammoth’s practice facility on Thursday ahead of the game. Neither Stefan Noesen nor Cody Glass participated and worked out off the ice instead. However, head coach Sheldon Keefe said both players will be available for Friday’s game. The two players are limiting their practice time on the ice to prevent injuries; the Devils definitely cannot afford any more players right now. However, both players did take part in the optional skate on Friday morning.

Speaking of injury, Wednesday’s game against the Golden Knights saw the return of Brett Pesce. He endured a hand injury on Oct. 26 and was out for 24 games. In the nine games prior to his injury, he recorded three assists. With the absence of Simon Nemec now, the Devils needed help on the blue line. Pesce’s return came at the perfect time. 

The player to watch in this game is Connor Brown. He was the only player to score a goal in regulation for the Devils on Wednesday. With the absence of several top forwards, Brown has moved into the top six. He’s already finding his stride; let’s see if he can continue it. 

Team Stats

New Jersey Devils
Season Record: 19-14-1

Top Scorers:

1. Jesper Bratt – 6 goals (G), 23 assists (A), 29 points (P)
2. Nico Hischier – 10 G, 16 A, 26 P
3. Timo Meier – 11 G, 12 A, 23 P
4. Dawson Mercer – 10 G, 12 A, 22 P
5. Jack Hughes – 10 G, 10 A, 20 P

Goalie Stats:

1. Jake Allen – 10-7-0, 2.49 goals-against average (GAA), .912 save percentage (SV%)
2. Jacob Markstrom – 8-7-1, 3.56 GAA, .874 SV%
3. Nico Daws – 1-0-0, 1.00 GAA, 968 SV%

Utah Mammoth
Season Record: 17-16-3

Top Scorers:

1. Nick Schmaltz – 12 G, 19 A, 31 P
2. Clayton Keller – 11 G, 19 A, 30 P
3. Dylan Guenther – 16 G, 12 A, 28 P
4. JJ Peterka – 13 G, 13 A, 26 P
5. Logan Cooley – 14 G, 9 A, 23 P

Goalie Stats:

1. Karel Vejmelka – 15-9-2, 2.72 GAA, .896 SV%
2. Vitek Vanecek – 2-7-1, 2.99 GAA, .873 SV%

Projected Lineups

(Subject to change before puck drop)
As per The Hockey Writers’ projected lineup article.

New Jersey Devils

Jesper Bratt — Nico Hischier — Dawson Mercer
Ondrej Palat — Cody Glass — Connor Brown
Paul Cotter — Juho Lammikko — Stefan Noesen
Xavier Parent — Luke Glendening — Angus Crookshank

Jonas Siegenthaler — Dougie Hamilton
Luke Hughes — Brett Pesce
Brenden Dillon — Colton White

Jake Allen
Jacob Markstrom

Scratched: Nathan Legare, Dennis Cholowski, Calen Addison, Timo Meier

Injured: Arseni Gritsyuk, Jack Hughes, Evgenii Dadonov, Zack MacEwen, Marc McLaughlin, Simon Nemec, Johnathan Kovacevic

Utah Mammoth

Clayton Keller — Nick Schmaltz — JJ Peterka
Lawson Crouse — Barrett Hayton — Dylan Guenther
Michael Carcone — Jack McBain — Daniil But
Liam O’Brien — Kevin Stenlund — Kailer Yamamoto

Mikahil Sergachev — John Marino
Nate Schmidt — Sean Durzi
Ian Cole — Nick DeSimone

Vitek Vanecek
Karel Vejmelka

Scratched: Brandon Tanev, Olli Maata

Injured: Logan Cooley, Alexander Kerfoot, Juuso Valimaki, Terrell Goldsmith, Anson Thornton

Next Up for the Devils

After two games on the West Coast, the Devils will return home and host the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday, Dec. 21.

The season series will conclude in New Jersey on Jan. 3.