Throughout the offseason, The Devils’ Den will preview the Devils 2010-2011 schedule, giving you an in-depth preview of the 29 other teams the Devils will face next season. We’ve already completed several previews, all of which can be found under the “Season Preview” tab. In today’s preview, we stay in the Western Conference, taking a look at this season’s matchup with the Detroit Red Wings.

Red Wings vs. Devils – Historical Data

In 84 all-time regular season meetings against Detroit, the Devils are 35-37-11-1. The Devils average 3.27 goals against the Red Wings, but they allow Detroit to average 3.36 goals against them. The matchup also has some playoff history, as the Devils swept the Red Wings, 4-0, in 1995 to win their first Stanley Cup. Last season, the teams played each other once, with the Devils defeating the Red Wings in a shootout, 4-3.

Jamie Langenbrunner scored the game’s first goal, giving the Devils a lead, 1-0, at 15:29 of the first period. Johnny Oduya extended the lead, netting an extra-strength goal at 17:25 of the period. Kris Draper cut the lead in half, scoring at 9:23 of the second period to put the Red Wings on the board, 2-1. Rob Niedermayer put the lead back at two at 14:43 of the period, putting the Devils ahead, 3-1. Tomas Holmstrom cut the Devils lead to one, tallying on the powerplay at 19:30 of the period to bring the Red Wings to within one, 3-2.

The Red Wings would complete the comeback, with Patrick Eaves tying the game, 3-3, at 9:30 of the third period. The teams would stay scoreless throughout the third period and into overtime. The Devils elected to shoot second in the shootout, and Pavel Datsyuk scored on the Red Wings first attempt. Zach Parise answered back, putting one past Chris Osgood to knot up the shootout, 1-1. Both teams remained scoreless until the fourth round, when Patrik Elias scored the game-winning goal in the shootout.

Devils vs. Red Wings – This Season’s Matchup

The Devils and Red Wings will face off twice this season, with each team playing the other at home. The Red Wings signed one of the bigger free agents this season, inking veteran Mike Modano to a one-year contract. The team kept several of its own players, opting to resign Nicklas Lidstrom and Eaves, to name a few. The team also saw Chris Chelios retire and join the front office.

The Red Wings are an aging group of stars, but they consistently put together a solid team each and every season. There’s a reason why the Red Wings have made the playoffs 19 seasons in a row. Detroit is always difficult to play, and I wouldn’t expect anything less this season.

Stat Pack

In 16 career starts against the Red Wings, Martin Brodeur is only 8-7-1 (tie) with a 2.11 goals against average and a .918 save percentage…Ex-Devil Brian Rafalski has only played one game against his former team, recording one assist.