New Jersey Devils at Vancouver Canucks: Game 4 Preview

The Time: 10:00 PM EDT

The Broadcast: TV - NHLN-US, TSN, MSG+; Radio - 660 AM / 101.9 FM WFAN

The Matchup: The New Jersey Devils (0-1-2) at the Vancouver Canucks (2-1-0; SBN Blog: Nucks Misconduct)

The Last Devils Game: The Devils began their five-game Canadian road trip against the Edmenton Oilers. The first two periods were fun with three goals - Jaromir Jagr's first as a Devil, Damien Brunner's third of the season, and Michael Ryder's second in as many games. Everything seemed to be going well with the Devils capitalizing on Edmonton's mistakes and finding the back of the net.

The third period was a completely different story. The Oilers scored four straight goals until Patrik Elias tied it with a short-handed goal (Brodeur was pulled for an extra attacker) in the last minute of regulation. In the end, we saw the Devils lose in the shootout for the second game in a row. For the full recap, check out Mike's write-up from early this morning - give it a read, he stayed up real late to write it.

The Last Canucks Game: The Canucks beat the Flames in overtime on Sunday by a score of 5-4. Mike Santorelli scored twice, along with David Booth, Jannik Hansen, and Dale Weise. Eddie Lack made his first start of the season and made 32 saves. After trailing 2-1 heading into the third period, Vancouver scored three goals to Calgary's two sending the game to overtime. Santorelli scored his second of the game just over three minutes into overtime to get the second point and a victory. Check out the full recap at Nucks Misconduct here.

The Goal: The Devils need to play a solid game from start to finish. They sat back too much during the third period last night, and they paid for it. They will be facing a rested Vancouver team on the second half of this back-to-back, but the Canucks are a good team and a full 60-minute effort will be vital. Coach DeBoer said the team learned a tough lesson last night after giving up what should have been a win. Hopefully he's right. If the Devils get a lead tonight, they can't sit back and give Vancouver too many chances.

Battle of the goalies: It's been talked about since the blockbuster trade on June 30^th - Corey Schneider and Roberto Luongo will meet for the first time as opponents. Both goalies are excited for the match, but Schneider has said that he doesn't want the media frenzy or hype to be a distraction to his team. He realizes that his new team needs a win and that's what he wants to focus on. While he is saying all of the right things, it could be challenging to get through the excitement leading up to the game. It will be up to Schneider to focus and get through his first game back in Vancouver.

The coaches aren't buddies: In a deservedly less hyped up story, the Devils will be facing John Tortorella, the ex-New York Rangers head coach with his new team. This shouldn't change too much, as the Devils have no rivalry with the Canucks, but we do know that DeBoer and Tortorella aren't the best of friends. One positive to playing a Tortorella coached team is that the Devils are familiar with the system he prefers to play, shot blocking and all.

Speaking of blocking shots, John Tortorella loves to see his players do just that; in fact, he requires it. He noted before the season began that he expected his stars, including the Sedin's to block shots and kill penalties and has recently been quoted saying the team will "deal with it" if one of them gets hurt doing so. Daniel and Henrik are still healthy, but Alex Burrows will be out for at least two-weeks after blocking a shot during the Canucks season opener against the San Jose Sharks.

Sedin's and co: The Devils will have their hands full with the Sedin twins, David Booth, and Ryan Kesler. While Henrik Sedin is still looking for his first goal of the season, nine different players have scored for the Canucks in their first three games of the season. New Jersey will also be facing a talented, though sometimes shaky goaltender in Roberto Luongo (he will also have the challenge of dealing with the hype of facing his ex-backup/ex-starter/ex-teammate/frenemy in Cory Schneider).

Time for a change? I'd say so. I think it's time to switch something in the lineup, preferably bringing in Mark Fayne. After starting the season with three losses, something has got to give. I wouldn't mind seeing Josefson in the lineup, either. Perhaps it's time to sit a few guys and see if a change or two sparks something.

Please, no shootout: The Devils are now 0-for-8 in shootout attempts this season. Since last season, the Devils have won just two shootouts and Brodeur is 0-6. Let's try to win before it gets to that point.

Your take: What would your preferred lineup be heading into tonights game? Who needs to step up in order for New Jersey to get their first win of the season? How do you think Schneider has been handling the media buzz heading into the game? Do you think he'll find success against his old team? Do you think the Devils will come out of this one with two points? Answer these questions and post your thoughts on the game tonight in the comments section below. Thanks for reading.