Devils vs Penguins Showdown Tonight: How to Watch Live, Key Stats & Bold Predictions

The Pittsburgh Penguins welcome the New Jersey Devils back from the Olympic break tonight in a Metropolitan Division showdown that could reshape the playoff picture. Puck drops at 7 p.m. ET inside PPG Paints Arena, with local coverage on Sportsnet Pittsburgh and a national stream on ESPN+. Why this matchup matters • Standings squeeze: Pittsburgh (29-15-12, 70 pts) sits third in the Metro, but New Jersey (28-28-2, 58 pts) can vault back into a wild-card chase with a statement road win. • Momentum reset: Both clubs return from Milan-Cortina rested yet reshuffled. The Penguins are 14-3-3 since Dec. 25, while the Devils dropped four straight before the break. Injury headlines Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby is out at least four weeks with an upper-body injury suffered during Team Canada’s silver-medal run, forcing Evgeni Malkin into top-line center duties. New Jersey remains without star winger Jesper Bratt (hand), but Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes are healthy and skating on separate scoring lines. Trade-deadline twist GM Kyle Dubas made the first big splash of February, acquiring puck-moving blueliner Samuel Girard from Colorado. The 27-year-old slots next to Erik Karlsson on an aggressive second pair that should test a Devils forecheck ranked sixth in the league in takeaways. Key stats to know • Power play clash: New Jersey’s man-advantage converts at 23.4%, but Pittsburgh’s penalty kill has snuffed 39 of the last 42 shorthanded situations (92.9%). • Rust vs. Jersey: Bryan Rust owns 34 career points in 42 games against the Devils—his highest total versus any opponent. • Goaltending edge: Vitek Vanecek (NJD) is 15-13-1 with a 3.20 GAA, while Tristan Jarry (PIT) sports a 2.70 GAA and .912 save percentage, including seven wins in his last nine starts. Projected lineups Devils Hughes – Mercer – Toffoli Palat – Hischier – Holtz Foote – Haula – Meier Bastian – McLeod – Lazar Hamilton / Siegel-Thaler Hughes / Marino Smith / Nemec Vanecek (starter), Schmid Penguins Guentzel – Malkin – Rakell Mantha – Lars Eller – Rust Kindel – Acciari – Chinakhov Nieto – Lizotte – O’Connor Letang / Graves Karlsson / Girard Pettersson / Ruhwedel Jarry (starter), Nedeljkovic How to watch & stream • TV: Sportsnet Pittsburgh, MSG+ 2 (NJ market) • Streaming: ESPN+, SN NOW • Radio: 105.9 The X (PIT), Devils Hockey Network Prediction & betting nugget Oddsmakers list Pittsburgh as –160 money-line favorites, but note the Devils have covered the puck line in seven of their last 10 visits to PPG Paints Arena. Expect a tight contest: Penguins 4, Devils 3 (OT), with Malkin extending his eight-game home point streak. SEO keywords: Devils vs Penguins live stream, how to watch Devils Penguins, Penguins lineup tonight, Devils injury report, Crosby injury update, Penguins vs Devils prediction, NHL games today.