Coming off Thursday's loss, Blues face Devils to complete back-to-back

Two teams coming off road losses 24 hours prior meet Friday night at the Prudential Center, where the New Jersey Devils host the St. Louis Blues.

The Devils dropped a 5-2 decision to the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, a game which will be best remembered for irate Montreal goaltender Carey Price pummeling New Jersey forward Kyle Palmieri following a goal-mouth collision late in the first period.

"It's a hockey play," Palmieri told the team's web site following the game. "It is what it is. (Price) was protecting himself. It happens."

Though the loss was only New Jersey's first in the past three games, the Devils have struggled the past three weeks. They are 3-8-3 in eleven games since bolting out to a 9-3-3 record to start the season.

Thursday marked the eighth time in the last 10 games that the Devils allowed four goals or more, a major reason for their current woes. Goaltending and solid team defense was New Jersey's calling card a year ago, and early this season when the Devils surrendered more than three goals only twice in the first 16 games and held opponents to two or fewer ten times in the same stretch.

Cory Schneider gave up five goals on a whopping 49 shots in Thursday's defeat. Keith Kinkaid will get the start in goal Friday when the Devils return home, where they own an 8-0-2 mark so far. New Jersey is the NHL's only club not to have lost a single game in regulation on home ice this season, and that 10-game run is the longest in franchise history without a defeat on home ice.

"There's a lot we all can do better," Schneider said Thursday. "At the same time, we need to regroup and face a good St. Louis team (Friday)."

Taylor Hall, who scored a goal and added an assist in Montreal, is set to appear in his 400th National Hockey League contest Friday night. In his first season with the Devils after spending the first six years of his career with the Edmonton Oilers, Hall is averaging better than a point per game (8 goals, 11 assists in 18 games), buoyed by seven points over his last three matches.

New Jersey will host a Blues team that was defeated 3-2 by the surging New York Islanders in Brooklyn on Thursday. However, the Blues have lost only three times since Nov. 15, skating to an 8-2-1 record in their last 11 games.

Robby Fabbri continued his recent strong play for the Blues by netting his sixth goal of the season and notching an assist against the Islanders. Fabbri, who went 12 games without a goal to start the season, has recorded five points (2-3-5) in his last five games.

"We need more from our top-end guys. We can't keep relying on guys like Fabbri and (Jaden) Schwartz to carry the day," Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock said after losing to the Islanders. "We need more from other people. That's the bottom line."

Fabbri's goal Thursday was assisted by Vladimir Tarasenko, who now has 28 points on the season, tops on the Blues and tied for third-most in the NHL. Kyle Brodziak also scored for the Blues, tying the game at 2-2 in the second period. However, the Blues ultimately fell when New York's Anders Lee scored his second goal of the night midway through the third period to break the tie.

"We left the game to chance," said Brodziak. "We didn't really do enough to gain control of the game. They're a good team that's playing well, playing with confidence. We have to find a way to gain control earlier in the game and not leave it 50-50 like that."

Friday's meeting will be the first this season between the Blues and Devils, who will conclude their season series in a rematch next Thursday in St. Louis.