Preview vs Flames

League Record So Far; 13 – 3 – 0, 26pts, 1st Place

Devils host rivals Guildford Flames in a top table, must win clash during an event for the home teams ‘air the bear’ night, as they look to wrap up maximum points on the weekend and further extend their lead at the top.

They arrive home as victors in a convincing six nothing win on the road to Storm the previous night, where their own visitors fell at home against the high flying Blaze.

Tale of the Tape

7 points and one game between them, no one expected Flames to be top 3 at this stage of the season from their less than ideal start, however they have quietly gone about their business, sharpened their tools and refocused on the league since their early cup exit.

As highlighted, Storms defensive woes and Weningers’ collapse in performance to date this season became evident as Zach O’Brien hit 20 points in regular season, along with a hat trick from Josh MacDonald to put them away.

Devils are still 4 – 1 – 0 in their L5GP, but haven’t looked back since a subpar performance last weekend and will surely want to put the exclamation note on an important game.

Flames are 2 – 3 – 0, putting them mid table on form and with their recent loss in a close game against this seasons dark horses, anything can happen in an promotional night involving these two teams.

Goalies

New goalie Taz Burman, former Flame, joined Mac Carruth for a shutout this season as Devil, leaving a lot of work and ground to catch up for Bowns, who is likely to start this evening.

Flames’ current shot stopper, Jake Kupsky, currently leads the league averages with 2.01 GAA and a 93.66 SV%. Bowns however, with 4 more GP, has 93.85 SV% and 2.07 GAA. So this will be a phenomenal battles between the pipes.

The latest heroics on the road helped to return the team to a 1.94 GAA, the next nearest, the visitors themselves with 2.47 GAA overall.

Special Teams

It has been noted that Devils have struggled to find consistency on the power play, however, following the game last night they went back to 6th to a respectable 21.28%, netting two PPGs, from both PP units.

The team now have 10 PPGs from 7 players, with MacDonald, Sanford and O’Brien collecting a pair each. With both units able to convert, this once again demonstrates scoring depth.

On the PK, this unit continues to stay on top of the league with 89.36%. Flames are currently third overall, with all penalties killed in their last game, this is a team that works hard with confidence and are difficult to break down.

What this means in terms of discipline and game management is that at this stage if the league staying out of the box is key. Both teams have a history of providing bonkers, highly dramatic and confrontational affairs. Flames are 3rd worst overall in PIMS\Game with 13.53, where as Devils are 4th overall just shy of 10.

This will be a key area for both teams, with the focus to get the points, not under each others skin.

Ones to Watch

It goes without saying that from the Devils, their points leader Zach O’Brien (20) is one to look out for, saving him, then Josh MacDonald (19) as both have scintillating skill with the puck, can score from anywhere and are dangerous on the power play.

For Flames, it is returning GB star and former Devil, Josh Waller, who currently leads his team in points (13). Ethan Strang (10) leads his team in goals scored, joint 2nd with MacDonald, both a marker behind leader Elijiah Barriga (11), these players can get on the board from anywhere.

One of the seasons best pick ups in my opinion is Jack Jacome, going 12 points from 15GP. He is dangerous in the low slot area, so giving him a sniff will often lead to a chunk being bitten into the net and on the scoreboard.

Where Jacome puts points on the board, he also damages his team, with 35 PIMs so far, but Catenacci carries 60 PIMs to this tie, so he will surely be a target for forecheckers and gritty players to earn some tilts in the process.

The contrast to this for the Devils is of course Riley Brandt, of which nearly half his current count of PIMs (50) could have been wiped had a correct call been made. The next nearest to him and more likely to go in the box for all sorts of infractions or just genuine rough stuff is new defence man, Jarrod Gourley with 27 in the league so far this season.

Cold Streak Continues to Freeze

As mentioned previously, forward Tyler Busch was embarking on a pointless run of games of late and from the previous game, it was added too. Now going 5 straight, he is officially cold, so with the likes of Shinkaruk set to return this week, it is an easy choice to scratch the import and prioritise the marquee signing.

This would keep the fans happy, as the Devils 4th line has been a massive contributor to the seasons story so far in all competitions,