The New Jersey Devils bring a borderline illegal roster to face the Montreal Canadiens tonight
The New Jersey Devils are indeed walking the line of illegality in their game against the Montreal Canadiens live from the Bell Centre.
For those who didn't know, the league imposes minimum standards for the "quality" of lineups that teams must field during pre-season games.
Well, tonight, for their game in Montreal, the Devils are very close to not complying with these regulations and fielding an almost illegal lineup.
An extremely weak lineup for the New Jersey Devils tonight at the Bell Centre
This comes directly from one of their top journalists.
The Devils are playing again tomorrow, so there's no need to travel some of the big names.»
- Amanda Stein, New Jersey journalist
Here are their full lines and pairings.
Hardman - Dowling - Labanc
Foote - Bowers - Willman
MacDermid - Parent - Holonen
Siegenthaler - Kovacevic
Hatakka - Nemec
Vilen - Casey
Allen
Daws
There will be very few regulars, and goaltender Jake Allen is likely to face a lot of pucks tonight against his former team.
Let's hope he's ready.
Some say it's almost disrespectful to the Canadiens and their fans, which isn't untrue, but it's mostly disrespectful to goaltender Allen if you ask me.
It's unlikely to be a pleasant night for him.
From what we understand, during pre-season games, teams are required to field at least 8 veterans in each game.
A veteran is considered to be a player who played 30 games or more the previous season, a recent first-round draft pick, or a player with 100 or more career NHL games.
The Devils are very close to not meeting these minimums, which says a lot about the quality of their lineup for tonight's game.
Still, we wish you a great game, dear fans. Go Habs Go!
| POLL | ||
Which of these teams will collect the most wins this season, in your opinion? | ||
| Montreal | 323 | 66.5 % |
| New Jersey | 163 | 33.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
