via Mike Morreale of NHL.com,

Season series: In the first game between the New Jersey Devils and the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena on Nov. 7, Jakub Kindl and Brendan Smith scored 33 seconds apart in the first period to highlight a 4-2 win. Jimmy Howard made 15 saves in the victory and Devils goaltender Cory Schneider was pulled after two periods after allowing four goals on 24 shots. The Red Wings are 43-36-11-1 all-time against the Devils, and 10-2-1 in the past 13 games dating back to the 2002-03 season.

Red Wings team scope: Center Pavel Datsyuk, who missed four straight games and six of eight with a reinjured groin, returned to the lineup on Wednesday and scored twice in a 5-2 win against the Philadelphia Flyers. Howard made 22 saves to earn his 10th victory of the season. Stephen Weiss scored his third goal since returning to the lineup on Monday in a victory against the Ottawa Senators. Smith (left hand infection) returned to practice on Wednesday but will need more time to recover despite being eligible to come off injured reserve Wednesday. Smith was hurt Nov. 18 in a fight with Columbus Blue Jackets forward Nick Foligno.

Devils team scope: The Devils completed their four-game road trip through Western Canada on Tuesday with a 2-0 loss against the Vancouver Canucks; they finished 1-2-1 on the trip. Schneider made 34 saves, including 17 in the first period, as the Devils lost for the eighth time in the past 11 games. Schneider is expected start against Detroit, his 22nd start in 23 games. The Devils' 21-point total after 22 games is two fewer than they had after the same number of games last season. Devils defensemen Marek Zidlicky and Andy Greene each received treatment after taking shots of their foot during the game, according to Northjersey.com. Each player is probable against the Red Wings. New Jersey's penalty kill has gone 27 for its last 28 over the past seven games. The penalty-killing unit allowed a third-period goal in a shootout loss against the Calgary Flames on Nov. 22 to end a run of 23 straight successful kills.

	GP	RECORD	HOME	ROAD	L10	G/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%	PIM/GP	S/GP	SA/GP	FO%
	22	12-5-5	8-2-2	4-3-3	6-2-2	2.91	2.32	20.2	88.6	8.8	30.5	26.5	53.1
	22	9-10-3	3-3-2	6-7-1	3-6-1	2.36	2.77	20.0	74.7	9.5	26.1	30.6	48.0

DETROIT RED WINGS

THE MATCHUP

- Tonight is the 92nd all-time meeting between DET and NJ
- Tonight marks the 2nd of 3 meetings this season between DET and NJ, only meeting in NJ
- DET’s all-time record vs. NJ: 43-36-11-1
- DET’s all-time home record vs. NJ: 13-22-9-1
- DET won the 1st meeting of the season 4-2 at JLA on 11/7. Kindl, Smith, Franzen and Kronwall scored for DET; Bernier and Tootoo scored for NJ
- DET is 10-2-1 in its last 13 meetings vs. NJ, dating back to the 2002-03 season
- Brendan Smith has 3 goals in 4 games vs. NJ
- Gustav Nyquist has 6 points (1-5-6) in 5 games vs. NJ
- Henrik Zetterberg has 7 points (1-6-7) in 11 games vs. NJ
- Johan Franzen has 9 points (6-3-9) in 9 games vs. NJ; 7 points (4-3-7) came during last season’s 3 games
- New Jersey’s top career scorers vs. DET: Jaromir Jagr (9-20-29 in 33 GP), Mike Cammalleri (9-16-25 in 24 GP) and Martin Havlat (9- 13-22 in 28 GP)
- NJ F Damien Brunner had 26 points (12-14-26) in 44 games with DET in 2012-13
- NJ F Jordin Tootoo had 9 points (3-6-9) and 83 PIM in 53 games with DET from 2012-14
- NJ F Mike Cammalleri had 131 points (65-66-131) in 110 GP with the Michigan Wolverines from 1999-02
- NJ D Jon Merrill had 47 points (11-36-47) in 82 games with the Michigan Wolverines from 2010-13
- NJ D Andy Greene hails from Trenton, MI
- NJ assistant coach Dave Barr had 200 points (70-130-200) in 293 games with DET from 1986-31
- NJ assistant coach Mike Foligno was drafted 3rd overall by DET in 1979 and had 160 points (77-83-160) in 186 games with DET from 1979-82
- NJ head coach Peter DeBoer was the GM and head coach for the Detroit/Plymouth Whalers from 1995-01

DET PLAYER AND TEAM RANKS

- Nyquist: T10th with 10 goals, T2nd with 6 power play goals
- Tatar: T20th with 9 goals
- Zetterberg: T15th with 14 assists
- Franzen: T2nd with 3 game-winning goals
- Kronwall: 20th with 24:19 average TOI, T13th among defensemen with 13 points - Datsyuk: 2nd with a 25.9 shooting percentage
- Glendening: 18th with a 54.4 faceoff percentage
- Kindl: T6th among defensemen with 2 power play goals
- Howard: T7th with 10 wins, 4th with a 2.09 GAA, T11th with a .920 SV%
- Team: 9th with 2.32 goals against/game, 11th with a 20.2 power play %, 2nd with a 88.6 penalty kill %, 2nd with a 26.5 shots against/game, T2nd in faceoffs at 53.1%

#13 ASCENDS

With two goals on 11/26 vs. PHI, Pavel Datsyuk tied and passed Ilya Kovalchuk to become the NHL’s sixth highest-scoring Russian player ever. Datsyuk has missed 11 games due to injury but has recorded points in 8 of the 11 games he has skated in this season.

THIS DATE IN RED WINGS HISTORY

Nov. 28, 1938 – Detroit purchases the contract of goalie Tiny Thompson from Boston.

NEW JERSEY DEVILS

Tonight's Game

New Jersey is returning from its four-game road trip (1-2-1) tonight. It's the team's first game at Prudential Center since Nov. 15 vs.Colorado (L, 2-3). The Devils will begin a three-game road trip tomorrow at the New York Islanders.
Tonight's contest opens the club's sixth of 18 sets of back-to-back games. New Jersey is 2-2-1 in first games and 2-2-1 in second games when playing on consecutive dates.
The Devils' penalty-kill unit was 2/2 on Tuesday at Vancouver and is 27/28 (96.4%) over the last seven games.

Devils vs. Red Wings

Tonight's game is the second of three between the Eastern Conference rivals and the only contest to be played at Prudential Center. Detroit leads the series 1-0-0 following a 4-2 win on Nov. 7 at Joe Louis Arena. The Red Wings out shot the Devils that night, 31-17.
Steve Bernier and Jordin Tootoo scored for the Devils, while Niklas Kronwall posted 1g-1a-2pts to lead the Wings. Cory Schneider (L, 40:00, 4 GA/24 SA) made the start in goal but was relieved by Keith Kinkaid (ND, 16:50, 0 GA/7 SA) at the start of the third period. Jimmy Howard (15 saves) earned the win for Detroit.
Jaromir Jagr leads New Jersey's active skaters in career scoring with 9g-20a-29pts in 33 games vs. the Wings. Schneider is now 1- 4-0, with a 3.46 goals-against average & a .890 save save-percentage in six career appearances and Scott Clemmensen is 1-2-1 with a 2.69 GAA & .925 save % in four games vs. Detroit.
The all-time series is tied 26-26-8, but the Devils are 15-8-6 in the previous 29 games played in New Jersey. The third and final game
of the season series will be played on New Year's Eve in Detroit.

Detroit Connections

Peter DeBoer began his coaching career as an Assistant for the Detroit Junior Red Wings (OHL). He was promoted the following year and served the Detroit/Plymouth Whalers as Head Coach for six seasons. Assistant Coach Dave Barr played four-plus seasons with the Red Wings from 1987-91. He was acquired by the Devils along with
Randy McKay on Sept. 9, 1991 as compensation for Detroit's signing of free agent Troy Crowder.
Assistant Coach Mike Foligno was Detroit's first choice (third overall) in the 1979 Entry Draft. He played two seasons for the Wings from 1979-81 before being traded to Buffalo.
Jordin Tootoo played 53 games for Detroit over the previous two seasons 2012-14.
Andy Greene hails from Trenton, MI. Jon Merrill was born in Oklahoma City, OK but grew up in Brighton, MI.
Merrill and Mike Cammalleri both attended the University of Michigan. Merrill and Detroit's Luke Glendening were teammates at UM for two seasons 2010-12
Red Wings' forward Drew Miller was born in Dover, NJ.

Jagr Climbing Up The Charts
Jaromir Jagr 1,495th career game on Tuesday at Vancouver and tied Phil Housley for 16th-place in NHL history. Mike Modano (1,499 GP) is 15th.
Jagr scored the 708th goal of his career on Nov. 10 at Boston and tied Mike Gartner for sixth-place in NHL history. He recorded 1a Nov. 22 at Calgary and now has 708g-1,060a-1,768pts in his career, which ranks sixth in league history. Marcel Dionne is fifth all-time with 731g-1,040a-1,771pts. He passed Steve Yzerman (692g-1,063a-1,755pts) for sole-possession of sixth-place with 2a on Oct. 9 at Philadelphia.
Jagr now trails Phil Esposito (717g) by nine goals for fifth place all-time. His 1,060a places him just three helpers behind Yzerman for seventh in NHL history. With 202 power play goals, he's tied Yzerman for 15th-place; Wayne Gretzky is next on the list with 204 PPG. In addition, Jagr is only 4 shots away from tying Al MacInnis (5,157) for third place all-time. He extended his NHL records with the 19 OT/125th GWG of his career on Oct. 25 at Ottawa.