After a mostly successful (3-2-1) road trip, their longest of the 2025-26 season, the Chicago Blackhawks are home. At 8-5-3, Chicago will take on the 11-4-1 New Jersey Devils.

The Blackhawks have won three games in a row. They haven't won four in a row since winning five in a row back during the 2022-23 season.  

Coming off a home loss in overtime, New Jersey is headed on a long road trip of their own, starting in The Windy City. 

Number One Picks

This game will feature a lot of high-end talent. Three of the last nine first overall picks will participate in this game. New Jersey Devils captain Nico Hischier is the oldest, as he was the first overall pick of the 2017 NHL Draft. Of course, that draft took place at the United Center. 

Two years later, New Jersey selected Jack Hughes with the first overall pick of the 2019 NHL Draft. Since then, both of them have become catalysts for a winning organization. 

In 2023, the Chicago Blackhawks selected Connor Bedard first overall. Like both Hughes and Hischier, it took a while for Bedard's offensive flair to take off, but we are seeing all three of them dominate games in 2025. 

There are also a couple of second overall picks participating in the game. New Jersey selected Simon Nemec second in 2022, while Chicago took Artyom Levshunov second in 2024. Both of them are now starting to realize their NHL potential as the games go on. 

Scouting New Jersey

Gritsyuk - Hughes - Mercer

Meier - Hischier - Bratt

Palat - Glass - Noesen

Cotter - Glendening - MacEwen

Siegenthaler - Nemec

Dillon - Hughes

Cholowski - White

Markstrom

New Jersey is making some changes to their top six. Arseny Griitsyuk is moving up to play with Jack Hughes. Jesper Bratt, however, who scores at a point per game pace these days, is swapping lines with Dawson Mercer. They are expecting that to open up more offense in the top six. 

Ondrej Palat is a nice veteran, but he is a step behind where he was as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Now, on the third line, he is in a much more fitting spot for what he brings to the table in 2025. 

On defense, New Jersey is dealing with a fair amount of injuries. That includes Dougie Hamilton, who has been a star in the NHL for years. There is a lot of youth on this blue line, but the Blackhawks must be wary of Simon Nemec and Luke Hughes, who can make big-time plays at a moment's notice. 

Jacob Markstrom will start in the net for the New Jersey Devils. Markstrom has had a rough start to the year, being outplayed by his backup, Jake Allen, but every game is one in which he could go back to his former Vezina-nominee form. Traffic in front, smart shot selection, and a hard forecheck will be Chicago's key to beating him early and often. 

Chicago's Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Starting Goalie

Bertuzzi - Bedard - Burakovsky

Teravainen - Greene - Mikheyev

Moore - Donato - 

Dach - Foligno - Lafferty

Vlasic - Rinzel

Grzelcyk - Murphy

Kaiser - Levshunov

Crevier

Knight

This lineup is in flux going into the matchup. For one, Jason Dickinson and Frank Nazar are still missing due to their injuries and will not play. 

Andre Burakovsky is a game-time decision. The Blackhawks needed an extra forward in case the answer is no, so they called up Landon Slaggert. If Burakovsky can't go, Slaggert will fit into that forward group somehow.

Connor Bedard is sure to see a lot of ice with the way this is shaking out. He is on an eight-game point streak, so expect him to come out flying, looking to make it nine in a row. 

On defense, they will be dressing seven once again. All seven of them have mostly played well in every game that they go with this strategy. 

In goal, Spencer Knight is the expected starter. Knight, so far this season, has been one of the best goalies in the NHL. Their confidence to start him in multiple consecutive games is showing. 

How To Watch

The Blackhawks vs Devils match is a national game in the United States. It will be the second game of a doubleheader on TNT. The puck will drop at 8:52 CT. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

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The Colorado Avalanche had a lot to do last offseason after another disappointing round one elimination from the Dallas Stars. Brock Nelson is a pending unrestricted free agent, and they may have very little cap space to sign him. So the day before the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, the Avalanche sent Charlie Coyle and Miles Wood to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Gavin Brindley, a 2025 third-round pick, and a 2027 conditional second-round pick.

What looked in the eyes of many like a quick cap dump, freeing over $7.5 million in cap space for a team looking to get deeper without giving up much, has turned out even better for the Avalanche and the way Brindley has been playing recently.

🗣️ Gavin Brindley

On the heels of his first career OT winner, the Avalanche Rookie signed a two-year extension this morning.#GoAvsGo | Powered By: https://t.co/O7RJKwUgbNpic.twitter.com/07oNOue9m3

— Guerilla Sports (@guerillasports) November 11, 2025

The Blue Jackets had additional draft picks and, combined with the prospect pool they have been building over the past couple of years, it was more about acquiring players of the caliber that Coyle and Wood can bring to their team. The third-round pick turned into Francesco Dell’Elce, a more offensive-style, left-shot defenseman from the University of Massachusetts, who has great skating for his age and a strong shot. His playmaking is solid, able to make great stretch-pass plays and use his skating to blow right by them if they give him too much space, but back to Brindley.

Drafted in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft in the second round out of the University of Michigan, who just finished with a season where he scored 25 goals and 28 assists for 53 points, leading his team in points and ahead of other notable prospects like Rutger McGroarty (Penguins), Frank Nazar (Blackhawks).

Heading into the draft, EliteProspects said this about Brindley;

“Brindley is a high-motor player who excels on the defensive side of the puck. He’s a tenacious forechecker and reliable in defensive zone coverage. He’s always in motion, always attacking lanes, bouncing around defenders to find them, especially on the power play. He anticipates plays ahead of time and moves to support them. -EliteProspects 2023 NHL Draft Guide”

He struggled in his first professional year with the Cleveland Monsters in the AHL, scoring six goals and 11 assists for 17 points. At the same time, other notable Blue Jackets outscored him, like Denton Mateychuk and Luca Del Bel Belluz. Though the Jackets, after last season's run, were in the market to bolster their depth, get more physical, and surround their growing prospects with veterans, the Avalanche were happy to do so and came out on top in the deal.

The Avalanche offloaded two contracts that, while deemed reasonable at the time of their acquisition, couldn't stay on the team due to their performance and cap implications.

They also get a young 21-year-old prospect who's looking to make a name for himself in a new system, and he's done just that. Many, including myself, didn't think he was going to mysteriously breakout and make the top six. Still, he shows flashes of top-six potential in his skating and puck-handling, as seen in his game against the Vancouver Canucks and in securing his first career overtime winner. It is his physicality that also fits in the bottom-six, along with his aggressive puck style.

GAVIN BRINDLEY IS YOUR OT HERO!! 😱

The @Avalanche win it in @Energizer overtime! pic.twitter.com/mfWQpTNCd4

— NHL (@NHL) November 10, 2025

In part of filling in for injured Joel Kiviranta and Logan O’Conner, Brindley has been excellent for the Avalanche and the role he fills for them. Despite just three goals and two assists for five points in 15 games, the effort and grinder mentality he brings with Parker Kelly and Zahkar Bardakov on the fourth line has been precisely what the Avalanche could expect from him in his early career.

This is just the style of effort and production that not only keeps him on the team for longer, as he just signed a two-year extension through the 2027-28 season. $850K two-way contract for 2026-27, $900K one-way for 2027-28. It also reminds people that there is still more room to grow and develop as the years come.

Avalanche Ink Gavin Brindley to Two-Year ExtensionThe young phenom will stay in Colorado for at least a while longer.

This is a player who can help the team win now by being productive and reliable in a bottom-six role, who has the opportunity in the seasons to come to grow and work his way into a middle/top-six role as players get older, traded, or not re-signed because they have his talents to fill higher in the lines.

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.

Mackinnon Three-Point Night Help Avalanche End Ducks Seven Game Win StreakMacKinnon's three-point night, including Landeskog's first goal of the season, helped the Avalanche take down the red-hot Ducks coming into Denver

The Florida Panthers are finally back home.

Despite the NHL season being just over a month old, the Panthers have already endured road trips of four and five game lengths, one of which took the team to the opposite side of the country for a week.

After a forgettable first trip, and a regretful opening game of last week’s trip in California, the Panthers are showing some serious signs of positivity.

That 7-3 loss last Tuesday in Anaheim led to an intense team practice and video sessions the following day in Los Angeles, one that Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice described as something of a back-to-basics kind of exercise.

Florida’s three games since have been three of their better games of the season, and certainly some of the best they’ve played on the road so far.

Now the question will be whether they can carry that momentum into what will be an extended period of time spent almost exclusively in South Florida.

Starting Thursday, when the Panthers host the Washington Capitals at Amerant Bank Arena, Florida will play 12 games over a 24-day stretch.

Only one of those 12 games will be on the road.

It all starts with a five-game homestand that starts Thursday and ends over a week later, as the Cats will host the Capitals, Tampa Bay Lightning, Vancouver Canucks, New Jersey Devils and Edmonton Oilers.

Then, a quick trip up to Tennessee for a matchup with the Nashville Predators on Monday, Nov. 24.

After that it’ll be right back down to South Florida for a six-game homestand that spans 12 days, featuring games against the Philadelphia Flyers, Calgary Flames, Toronto Maples Leafs, Nashville, Columbus Blue Jackets and New York Islanders.

So far this season, the Panthers have played only seven of their 16 games at home, holding a strong 5-1-1 mark in Sunrise.

If they can find a way to combine the recent momentum that was found on the road with their already formidable ability to win games at home, the next several weeks could be very prosperous for the Panthers.

Entering play Wednesday, Florida holds a very mediocre 8-7-1 record on the season. It’s good for a tie for sixth in the Atlantic Division with Toronto and a spot one point behind the Wild Card leading Flyers.

The good thing for the Panthers is that the standings are still extremely tightly packed, as only five points separate Florida from the top of the division, with games in hand on both the Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators, who sit second and third in the Atlantic, respectively.

Bottom line, the Panthers have a wonderful opportunity in front of them to simultaneously continue riding the momentum of their trip, enjoy some time at home while working with more familiar routines and made up some ground in the standings at a time where it’s easiest to do so.

We’ll see if Florida can take advantage in the coming days and weeks.

Stay tuned.

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Photo caption: Nov 1, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers right wing Mackie Samoskevich (11) celebrates with goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) after winning a shootout against the Dallas Stars at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

The Buffalo Sabres currently sit in dead-last in the Eastern Conference with a 5-6-4 record. But the worst could be yet to come – and it may be coming this week.

For proof, just look at the Sabres’ schedule. When you do, you’ll see that, over the next six days, Buffalo has four games. And it isn’t as if any of them are against pushover teams.

Indeed, the Sabres start off this punishing stretch of schedule on the road – where three of their next four games will be played – with a showdown Wednesday against the Utah Mammoth. One night later, Buffalo travels to Denver to take on the dominant Colorado Avalanche. Then, on Saturday, the Sabres battle the Red Wings in Detroit. And finally, Buffalo squares off against Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers in Buffalo. 

To be sure, the Sabres could come out of this four-game span with four losses. And before they    know it, it’ll be the third week of November and Buffalo will be all but buried in the standings. And fat that point, it will be time for Sabres GM Kevyn Adams and the team to part ways. 

Sabres Must Get Out Of Losing Spiral, Or Deal With The ConsequencesThe Sabres' losing streak is threatening their playoff hopes. Can Buffalo finally break the cycle before time runs out on their post-season dreams?

The Mammoth are one of the NHL’s up-and-coming teams. The Avalanche can beat any team in the league. The Wings are a pleasant surprise. And the Oilers will be continuing to prove they’ve got the ability to hang with any team. So there’s no question Buffalo really could come out of the next week with an 0-4-0 record. And that would be a calamity that should result in the resignation of Sabres GM Kevyn Adams and coach Lindy Ruff. 

What can you say if the Sabres are essentially out of the playoffs by Christmas? You can’t say “Look at our long-term prospect!”. You can’t say “We’re going to be great four years down the line,’ “ You need results, and they need to be positive and lasting, and you need them right now. And if that sounds like a tall order, that’s because it is.

Sabres Entering Stretch That Could Spell End Of The Line For GM, CoachThe Sabres once again are in a difficult stretch. And if they can't win more consistently, the jobs of GM Kevyn Adams and coach Lindy Ruff are in serious jeopardy.

The Sabres’ start to the season went about as poorly as they may have hoped, and now, they’ve got a killer stretch to deal with. The way they respond could be the difference between them making and missing the playoffs.