New Jersey Devils vs Columbus Blue Jackets Prediction & Picks - NHL

Prediction published on 10/13/25, 3:31 PM  by Erik Gibbs in NHL Picks

The Columbus Blue Jackets and New Jersey Devils face off on Monday in a heated NHL battle. Both open their 2025–26 campaigns sitting at 1-1-0, and after the first two games, both have shown flashes of promise—and a few rough edges. The Blue Jackets kicked off the season in Nashville with a 2-1 loss. The offense stuck around but ran into Juuse Saros in net; rookie Dmitri Voronkov scored Columbus's lone goal, but a late third-period powerplay tally cost them. The mood afterward? Coach Dean Evason called out the fight in his squad and saw “a lot of positives” despite the outcome.

In Game 2, Columbus flipped the switch in a 7-4 win over Minnesota. Kirill Marchenko bagged a hat trick; Elvis Merzlikins turned aside 48 shots; Werenski and Boone Jenner each posted three points. After blowing a 2–0 lead, the Jackets locked in down the stretch, pummeling the Wild with four unanswered goals in the third to seal the comeback.

On the Devils side, New Jersey started with a 6-3 loss at Carolina. The Devils actually rallied to make it 3–3 late before Carolina's Seth Jarvis netted the dagger goal, adding an empty-netter to close it out. Coach Sheldon Keefe admitted they weren't perfect but liked their tenacity. In Game 2, New Jersey leaned on depth to edge Tampa Bay 5–3. Connor Brown scored twice; rookie Arseny Gritsyuk had two assists; Hischier and Meier added multi-point efforts. Bratt picked up a shorthanded goal to help seal the win.