Early look The full preview opens on Sunday 25 October, three days before puck drop, with the expected goalies, the latest team news and game-day prices. Until then this page shows the matchup as it stands.
Early look · NHL 2026-27

New Jersey Devils at Colorado Avalanche: game preview

Puck drop28 Oct · 9:00 PM ET
VenueBall Arena
All-time meetings56 completed
BasisLast 5 meetings + 2025-26
The thesis

Thirty-four points apart last season

New Jersey finished last season 21st in the league on 87 points. Colorado finished 1st on 121.

Game-day prices arrive with the afternoon snapshot, about 4:30 PM ET on the day of the game.

Head-to-head

Meeting number 57

Across 56 completed games, Colorado lead the head-to-head 32-20-4.

All-time record32-20-4Colorado's record in the series
Meetings played56This is number 57
2025-26 series—
Last 53-2Colorado
DateResultShotsPower playWinner
28 Oct 2025NJD 4 – COL 8——COL
26 Oct 2025COL 3 – NJD 4 OT——NJD
26 Feb 2025NJD 1 – COL 5——COL
8 Dec 2024COL 4 – NJD 0——COL
6 Feb 2024COL 3 – NJD 5——NJD
Head-to-head finder

The table on each 2025-26 meeting night

DateNew JerseyColorado
26 Oct 20258-1-0 · 16 pts1st5-1-4 · 14 pts3rd
28 Oct 20258-2-0 · 16 pts1st6-1-4 · 16 pts4th

League rank after that night's games; a longer bar is a higher place. On 26 Oct 2025, New Jersey were 1st in the league and Colorado 3rd. By 28 Oct 2025 it was 1st and 4th.


Where the shots come from · last 5 meetings

Colorado out-attempted New Jersey 137 to 123

Every attempt from the last meetings, both teams shooting right.

New Jersey Devils

123 att · 54 on goal · 8 G · 14.8%
Crease14 att · 1 G
Slot38 att · 4 G
Wing48 att · 3 G
Point21 att · 0 G
Neutral zone2 att · 0 G

Colorado Avalanche

137 att · 66 on goal · 11 G · 16.7%
Crease13 att · 1 G
Slot52 att · 5 G
Wing46 att · 5 G
Point21 att · 0 G
Neutral zone5 att · 0 G
GoalOn goalMissedBlocked

Expected goals

Colorado have created the better chances, last 10 games

Shot quality both ways: expected goals weigh every unblocked attempt by its chance of scoring. Finishing above zero means more goals than the chances.

New JerseyColorado
3.52xG for per game3.16
3.01xG against per game2.55
53.9%xG share55.4%
−4.5FinishingGoals minus expected goals+7.7
−4.0GoaltendingExpected goals against minus goals allowed+0.1

This season: 3 games for New Jersey, 2 for Colorado. Small sample: early-season xG moves a lot from night to night.

Every team’s xG →


Special teams

Power play and penalty kill, season and series

This season's rates first, then 2025-26 and the last meetings between the two. Power-play chances are counted from the penalty log with coincidental minors cancelled; faceoffs are each club's wins over draws taken.

All bars share one scale · 0–100%SeasonLast meetings

New Jersey

Small sample
Power play · 2026-277.1%
Power play · 2025-2622.0% · 13th
Power play · last 5 meetings—
Penalty kill · 2026-2762.5%
Penalty kill · 2025-2679.3% · 17th
Faceoffs · 2026-2747.5% · 87/183
Drawn · 2026-2714 (4.67/gm)
Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)
Shorthanded · 2026-278 (2.67/gm)
PP goals · last meetings0

Colorado

Small sample
Power play · 2026-2744.4%
Power play · 2025-2617.1% · 27th
Power play · last 5 meetings—
Penalty kill · 2026-27100.0%
Penalty kill · 2025-2684.6% · 1st
Faceoffs · 2026-2746.8% · 58/124
Drawn · 2026-279 (4.50/gm)
Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)
Shorthanded · 2026-276 (3.00/gm)
PP goals · last meetings0

Skaters

Skaters to watch

Each club's top three forwards and defencemen by points this season, with 2025-26 one tap away.

PlayerGPGAPP/GP
86Jack Hughes31120.67
63Jesper Bratt30220.67
88Martin Necas22242.00
Points leaders
PlayerGPGAPP/GP
43Luke Hughes31010.33
47Declan Chisholm30110.33
42Josh Manson21231.50
8Cale Makar21231.50
7Devon Toews20221.00
Defencemen stats

Goaltending

Who has stopped this matchup

Save percentage in the last meetings by goalie. Starters are confirmed on game day.

Expected startersAn estimate until the teams confirmEvery game tonight →

Expected starter after their game on 27 Oct: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

Expected starter after their game on 25 Oct: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

New Jersey crease

NJD · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 25 Oct

Jake Allen.8752 GP · 1-1-0 · GSAx −1.7
Nico Daws.8131 GP · 0-1-0 · GSAx −2.5

No appearances against Colorado in the last meetings.

Colorado crease

COL · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 25 Oct

Mackenzie Blackwood.9122 GP · 2-0-0 · GSAx +0.1

No appearances against New Jersey in the last meetings.


Totals

Scoring rates point to about 6.2 goals

No total is posted yet: it arrives with the game-day prices. Until then, the scoring rates and the recent meetings set the range.

Goals in the last 5 meetings

28 Oct 202512 · NJD 4–8 COL
26 Oct 20257 · COL 3–4 NJD
26 Feb 20256 · NJD 1–5 COL
8 Dec 20244 · COL 4–0 NJD
6 Feb 20248 · COL 3–5 NJD

Bar length is total goals, coloured by the winner.

Scoring rates

Team26-27 GF26-27 GA25-26 GF25-26 GA
New Jersey2.004.332.803.10
Colorado7.002.503.682.48

Goals for and against per game. The estimate averages each team’s scoring with the other’s goals allowed, and leans on 2025-26 until a team has played 20 games.

Scoring rates suggest6.2Goals in this game
Last 5 meetings7.4Goals per game
Line—No total posted yet
Books at the line—With the game-day prices

Team news

9 on the injury lists

New Jersey · injuries

Connor BrownLower BodyOutReturn12 Oct
Johnathan KovacevicKneeIRReturn10 Oct
Jonas SiegenthalerUndisclosedDay-to-dayReturn10 Oct
Nick BjugstadPectoralIRReturn19 Jan
Seamus CaseyKneeIRReturn21 Nov

Colorado · injuries

Georgii MerkulovUndisclosedIRReturn16 Oct
Logan O'ConnorLower BodyIRReturn7 Oct
Trent MinerUndisclosedIRReturn10 Oct
Zachary L'HeureuxLower BodyIRReturn7 Oct
27 Sep · NJD

Claimed LW Jeremie Poirier off waivers.

27 Sep · NJD

Claimed LW Jeremie Poirier off waivers. Placed C/RW Marc McLaughlin, LD Vladislav Kolyachonok, G David Rittich, LW Riley Tufte, LD Topias Vilen, and C/RW Colin White on waivers.

25 Sep · NJD

Assigned Ds Mikael Diotte, Ethan Edwards, Jeremy Hanzel, Etienne Morin and Anton Silaev, Fs Josh Filmon, Lenni Hameenaho, Shane Lachance, Matyas Melovsky, Xavier Parent, Cam Squires and Ben Steeves and G Jakub Malek to Utica (AHL). Waived for the purpose of assignment to Utica Ds DJ King, Charles Leddy and Eamon Powell, Fs Tristan Ashbrook, Zachary Gallant, Gabe Klassen, Jack Malone, Justin Pearson, Ryan Schmelzer, Cristophe Tellier and Jermey Wilmer and Gs Jeremy Brodeur and Seth Eisele.

27 Sep · COL

Placed LD Keaton Middleton, LD Wyatt Aamodt, RW/LW Fabian Lysell, C Vinnie Hinostroza, LW Adam Beckman and LW Tristen Nielsen on waivers.

27 Sep · COL

Placed D Keaton Middleton, D Wyatt Aamodt, LW Fabian Lysell, C Vinnie Hinostroza, LW Adam Beckman and G Mads Sogaard Nielsen on waivers.

25 Sep · COL

Reassigned Ds Domenick Fensore, Saige Weinstein and Christian Wolanin to Colorado (AHL).

Injury report
#12Alexander CommandRound 1 · Orebro Jr.C
#37Matias VanhanenRound 2 · EverettLW
#44Nikita ShcherbakovRound 2 · Ufa Jr.D
#119Lavr GashilovRound 4 · Yekaterinburg Jr.C
Full draft
#43Egor ShilovRound 2 · VictoriavilleC
#74Beckett HamiltonRound 3 · Red DeerC
#126Tobias TvrznikRound 4 · WenatcheeG
#128Axel ElofssonRound 4 · Orebro Jr.D
Full draft

Updated after every final