Can New Jersey Devils Capitalize on Home Ice Against Ottawa Senators?

As the New Jersey Devils prepare to host the Ottawa Senators at Prudential Center, fans are left pondering whether their team can leverage home advantage to secure a victory. The upcoming game, scheduled for March 23rd, is an opportunity for the NJD to bounce back after a mixed bag of results in recent outings.

The last time NJD faced off against an opponent at Prudential Center was against the Carolina Hurricanes on March 9th. Despite a valiant effort and out-hitting their opponents with 27 hits compared to Carolina's 18, they fell short with a final score of 2-4. One area that stood out was their even-strength performance where they scored both goals but allowed three against them. Their power play failed to convert despite having four opportunities.

However, there's reason for optimism as NJD showed resilience in another recent home game against St. Louis Blues on March 8th. They dominated by putting up four goals and securing a win with strong even-strength play and effective penalty killing — not allowing any goals while shorthanded.

Against OTT, NJD will need to focus on improving faceoff win percentages which have been inconsistent; they won only 48 percent against both Hurricanes and Blues. Winning faceoffs is crucial as it can control the game's tempo and create scoring opportunities.

OTT comes into this matchup after witnessing NJD’s struggles at Madison Square Garden against New York Rangers on March 11th where NJD lost by one goal margin (1-3). The Devils managed only one goal from twenty shots indicating that finishing needs improvement if they are going to capitalize on home ice advantage.

The Senators should not be underestimated though; they will come prepared and look to exploit any weaknesses shown by NJD in previous games. It is imperative for the Devils' defensemen and goaltender—who saved an impressive save percentage of nearly 100 percent across these games—to remain vigilant throughout all periods.

For fans looking forward to this clash, mark your calendars: The puck drops at Prudential Center in Newark at 7:00 PM local time (EST) on March 23rd. You can catch all the action live either online via ESPN+ or through traditional broadcast on MSGSN TV network.