The Devils are without their leading scorer, Patrik Elias, as they open the 2011-12 edition of the Battle of the Hudson against the Rangers on Tuesday night in Newark.
Coach Pete DeBoer said Elias had not recovered sufficiently from the illness that kept him out of practice Monday and this morning.
“He’s still feeling it. He’s home resting and will not play tonight,” said DeBoer, who had also been affected by what he called a “24-hour bug.”
In New Jersey’s previous game, a 5-3 victory in Montreal on Saturday, Elias scored twice to set the Devils’ record with 348 career goals, breaking John MacLean’s 14-year mark.
Travis Zajac, two games back from Aug. 18 Achilles tendon surgery, takes Elias’ spot between Dainius Zubrus and Petr Sykora.
DeBoer said he has added incentive for his first regular season game against the Rangers, who are being featured on HBO’s “24/7: Flyers/Rangers Road to the Winter Classic.”
“We’d better win,” DeBoer said. “I have two boys, 11 and 9, and they watch the HBO series like a religion. The last thing they want to to see is their dad lose on national TV.”