Devils’ Cody Glass to return after seven-game absence

The New Jersey Devils will get some forward help on Thursday, as they get set to welcome center Cody Glass back to the lineup after a seven-game absence. The 26-year-old last played on Oct. 21 against the Toronto Maple Leafs, leaving midway through the 5-2 win. 

While he was not initially expected to be available for Thursday’s clash with the Montreal Canadiens, head coach Sheldon Keefe said that he felt better than expected and had been medically cleared to return.

Through six games in the 2025-26 NHL regular season, Glass has scored two goals and no assists, while also putting up three hits and two blocked shots, averaging 12:34 of ice time per game. While he returns, the Devils won’t be able to turn to Connor Brown, who will be unavailable.

“Cody Glass came in feeling better than expected from yesterday and is good to go,” Keefe said. “Connor Brown wasn’t feeling as good and is not where they want him to be, so that’s going to take a little more time to resolve, so he’ll be out.”

Glass rose to prominence in his draft season with the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks before becoming the first NHL Draft pick in Vegas Golden Knights history, when the expansion team selected him sixth overall in 2017. 

While he thrived in junior with 37 goals and 102  points in 64 games in 2017-18, he has not found the same offensive explosiveness in the NHL, where he has 37 goals and 95 points through 258 games, split between the Golden Knights, Nashville Predators, Pittsburgh Penguins and Devils. 

Heading into Thursday’s game, the Devils boast a 9-4-0 record, sitting in first in the Metropolitan Division. After playing the Canadiens, they will turn their attention to facing one of Glass’s former teams, the Penguins, on Saturday night on home ice.