After the New Jersey Devils beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1 last night, they have almost solidified their spot in the playoffs.
With their most recent win, they now have a 10 point lead over Columbus and an eight-point lead over the New York Rangers. The Devils currently sit in third place in the Metropolitan Division with 80 points. They currently have a 96.2% chance of making the playoffs according to MoneyPuck.
With the season winding down, the Devils have 13 games remaining. Even if the Devils clinch a playoff spot soon, they want to keep winning games so they have the best seed possible. If the season ended today, the Devils would be playing the Carolina Hurricanes in round one. With the gap between the first place team, the Washington Capitals, and the gap between the fourth place team, the New York Rangers, it seems that these top three seeds are almost a lock. The Hurricanes currently have six more points than the Devils for a total of 86 points.
After losing key parts to their lineup like Jack Hughes, Dougie Hamilton and Jonas Siegenthaler, fans weren’t sure if they would see the Devils in the post-season. Players like Jesper Bratt and Timo Meier have stepped up their play as of late to push the Devils in the last few weeks of the season.
Bratt currently is leading the Devils to the playoffs by having 10 points in his last four games. Meier has taken it up a notch in the month of March. He has five goals and seven points since March 1.
Jake Allen has been everything the Devils needed and more. Allen had to take over the starting goaltender position when Jacob Markstrom got hurt and was able to keep the Devils afloat at a time they were struggling. In his last three starts, he is 3-0-0, has four goals against and a save percentage of .961. With Markstrom not at 100% still, having Allen play at this level is giving the Devils a chance to win every game.
With just a few games left, the Devils need to keep playing at the level of competition we have seen the past few games, minus the game against Pittsburgh. They have to remain consistent and push themselves to the end.
With the regular season ending on Thursday, April 17, we can only assume the playoffs will begin sometime that weekend or early the following week. Where will we see the Devils in that time?
