The New Jersey Devils have lost three straight games and while injuries have taken their toll, that’s not something they can afford to hide behind if they want to avoid digging a hole for themselves early.
“We have to stop the bleeding here,” Devils coach Pete DeBoer said, per the Star-Ledger. “Whoever is dressed (tonight), whether we have all five of those (injured) guys who are out or whether one or two of them come back, we’ve got to stop the bleeding.”
DeBoer feels the team needs to play at a minimum of .500 while they work through their current batch of significant injuries. More than anything, they want to avoid following in Columbus’ footsteps, which has collapsed with eight straight losses as key players are forced to watch from the sidelines.
Jon Merrill, Adam Henrique and Ryane Clowe didn’t travel with the Devils to Boston for Monday’s game, so obviously none of them will play. Mike Cammalleri (upper body) and Martin Havlat (lower body) might be available though.
The Bruins are also dealing with more than their fair share of injuries, but they have still managed to win their last four games.