Tonight's game will be just the second time this season that the Penguins have faced the Devils, their Metropolitan Division rivals. Strange, considering that it's coming in the last week of February.
Try as they might, the Penguins certainly can't forget their first meeting against the Devils. Their 3-1 loss in Newark on Feb. 3 might be their worst during their second-half resurgence.
Coming off an emotional home win over the Capitals a night earlier, the Penguins were completely outplayed at the Prudential Center, firing a season-low 16 shots on goal.
Coming off a loss Saturday in Florida to the Panthers, the Penguins need no extra motivation tonight to extend their home winning streak to 12. New Jersey is just four points behind the Penguins with a game in hand.
"It's always tight," Kris Letang said. "That division is, like, crazy. We know it's going to be decided in, like, the last two games of the year."
Here are tonight's three keys to victory:
1. Speed bump ahead.
It remains uncertain if Derick Brassard will make his Pittsburgh debut on Tuesday, but the Penguins will get another look at the third-line center who got away.
Before pulling off Friday's blockbuster trade for Brassard, the Penguins were believed to have shown great interest in Michael Grabner, formerly of the Rangers. Instead, Ray Shero swooped in and nabbed Grabner from the Blueshirts at the cost of Russian prospect Yegor Rykov and New Jersey's 2nd round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft.
This will be Grabner's second game in a Devils sweater after being held scoreless Saturday by the Islanders.
Obviously the Penguins are well aware of the Austrian, who has now played for all three metropolitan New York teams in his nine-year career. If Carl Hagelin isn't the NHL's fastest skater -- at least without a puck -- it might be Grabner.
Here's a little reminder:
That was Grabner's goal against Matt Murray on Oct. 17 at Madison Square Garden while still with the Rangers. It should look familiar. Grabner has two goals in three games this season against the Penguins and 12 in 33 career games.
Much like Hagelin, Grabner uses his speed to generate turnovers by pestering defensemen. If he gets past you, he's gone. He's also a much better finisher, as evidenced by his 77 goals over the previous three seasons, though he's not much of a playmaker with an alarmingly low 25 assists over that time.
"He's a guy who's really dangerous," Sidney Crosby said. "Turnovers -- you mismanage the puck and he's a guy who can be gone pretty quickly. He's someone to be aware of. A lot of guys on their team can skate. They play a fast game. Very similar to the way we like to play, so it should be a good matchup."
The Penguins, collectively, will need to contend with Grabner and do a much better job of taking away his time and space.
2. Do not underestimate the Devils.
New Jersey has been maddeningly inconsistent all season. Their last 18 games have gone as such: Four straight losses, three straight wins, four straight losses, four straight wins, two losses and a win Saturday over the Islanders.
That said, John Hynes' team is where few thought they would be at this time. Their 69 points have them solidly entrenched as the No. 1 wildcard team in the East and in line for a possible first-round meeting with the Penguins.
Considering that Feb. 3 game, the Devils might give the Penguins more fits than any team in the Metro. They are not as sexy an opponent as other Metro contenders like, say, the Capitals, Flyers or even Blue Jackets, but they are fast and, as we've seen, good.
After playing his first six seasons for some bad Edmonton teams, Taylor Hall is reminding everyone why he was the first overall pick in 2010. Hall's 66 points are 13th in the league, including 26 goals, making him a dark-horse candidate for the Hart Trophy.
He is joined by Nico Hischier, this year's first overall pick, who is coming on strong. He's not going to surpass the Islanders' Matthew Barzal in the rookie scoring race anytime soon, but he does have points in seven of the last eight games. Over that stretch, he has 10 points (four goals).
These are not your father's -- or at least your older brother's -- Devils.
3. Home sweet home.
For reasons even they're not quite sure of, the Penguins have been outstanding at home this season. At PPG Paints Arena they are 23-7-1 and have outscored opponents there 116-85.
During their current 11-game home winning streak -- two short of the club record, set in the 2013-14 season-- they have outscored opponents 55-29.
And the league's top-ranked power play (27.2 percent)? It's even better at home. During their home winning streak, they have converted on 11 of 32 (34 percent).
Oh, and there's this: Since 2013-14, the Penguins are 8-1-0 on home ice against the Devils.
In other words, just keep doing what they've been doing.