After suffering a 3-1 defeat to the Rangers last night, the Devils are back in business. Tonight, they face the LA Kings, who are in the middle of an eight-game road trip. That nearly matches New Jersey's record-tying nine-game road trip which opened the current season.

The Devils need to bounce back from a heartbreaker to the Rangers last night in a hurry. They have lost five of six on the current home stand (one road win in between) and are in need of some offensive production. Zach Parise had the Devils lone goal last night, as the Rangers won their fifth straight over the Jersey Boys.

In the meanwhile, the last-place Kings are coming off a 3-1 upset over the Islanders on Thursday night. However, captain defenseman Rob Blake, who suffered a left ankle stress fracture and played despite the pain for six games, returned to Los Angeles after the game and will not play tonight, Devils Beat Writer Tom Gulitti said on his blog. Scott Thorton might not play either, Gulitti said.

The Devils remain without the services of Jay Pandolfo and Cam Janssen, as both players recover from their respective injuries, Gulitti said. Pandolfo originally suffered a pubic bone ligament problem on Nov. 28 and has yet to return to the Devils lineup. Janssen needed shoulder surgery after getting into a pre season fight. Despite remaining on IR, both players have since returned to the ice, skating hard lately, according to Gulitti.

During the recent stretch, the Devils have manufactured just 11 goals in their last six home games at the Prudential Center. They look to regain home ice advantage when the Kings visit later tonight.

Despite the inconsistent offensive production (128 goals--> tied for 28th), the Devils are still within contention for the division crown. They are only two points out of first place in the Atlantic with 31 left on the schedule.

Credit goaltender Martin Brodeur, who, in his 14th season, is still among league leaders in many statistical categories.

The 35-year-old netminder has a 26-18-2 record, .917 SV%, 2.20 GAA and 4 shutouts.

Brodeur has not won since Dec. 22, when New Jersey earned a 7-3 decision at Philadelphia. He has not blanked an opponent since Jan. 4, also a 3-0 win against the Flyers.

Before the Rangers game, head coach Brent Sutter told Gulitti that Brodeur is expected to start every game unless otherwise noted.

"You've got to assume Marty is going to play until told otherwise," Sutter said.

With or without Brodeur in the lineup, the Devils have relied on Parise and Patrik Elias, who makes crazy money. Both skaters have severely underproduced thus far. Parise has 45 points in 50 games, Elias has 33 in 51 games.

While New Jersey had no representatives in the All Star Game (Brodeur did earn starting spot), Los Angeles sent 20-year-old Anze Kopitar, who has a team-leading 48 points.

The Kings will also counter offensively with Dustin Brown's 24 goals, which ranks in the top 15.

Reagrdless, the Devils need to score in order to solidify their chances of making the post season. Especially, if they are to post a threat to the Eastern Conference reigning champion Ottawa Senators, who are having their own goaltender problems.

It starts and ends tonight.

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