With the Devils set to face the Rangers for the first time this season, coach Peter DeBoer indicated this morning that he's feeling good about his club's recent play. They've won a season-high four in a row to go five games over .500 for the first time in 2011-12.

"There's obviously areas we need to improve at, including the power play and some defensive lapses here and there, still, in the last minute of games," DeBoer said. "But we're improving in a lot of areas. I think the offense is starting to come. We're starting to jell, we're starting to get multiple lines contributing.

"We're playing better. I thought the third period in Montreal the other night [5-3 win] was our best third period with the lead this year. We have to clean up the last minute a little bit. We didn't do a great job with [their] goalie out, but we're improving and doing a lot of things better. That's the idea of this League – you have to get better every day in areas."

• Martin Brodeur will start in net.

"They have a great record [18-8-4]," Brodeur said of the Rangers. "We look at the record, we look at the way they play defensively and I think that's where I think it's going to be a big challenge for us to get to them. Offensively, [Marian] Gaborik's been playing really well, a few guys are putting the pucks in the net, so we're definitely looking forward to a matchup with a team that's, right now, higher than us in the standings."

• Patrik Elias (sick) will not play. Henrik Tallinder (back spasms) will miss his third straight game.

Projected lines:

Sykora-Zajac-Zubrus
Parise-Henrique-Kovalchuk
Tedenby-Carter-Clarkson
Boulton-Sestito-Janssen

Taormina-Fayne
Volchenkov-Foster
Salvador-Larsson