The sound that you hear is the New Jersey Devils walking off the playoff stage after their third loss in four games,this one to the Boston Bruins 4-1.Ilya Kovalchuk's power play tally (27) that gave the Devils the early lead was the only goal on the evening.
The loss places New Jersey nine points out of eighth place with nine games remaining in the season.
In the simplest of terms-the Devils need to win all nine and hope for help.
Now considering the pace that the Devils have set until recently,the nine game win streak is possible.
Not likely,but possible.
However,a whole lot of teams need to fall apart in the stretch and I do not see all of those squads falling apart.
In lieu of Hell Raisers on a game that mainly featured dumb penalties that then allowed goals with the man disadvantage,I would like to offer some thoughts on why a Devils winning streak would not be a terrific thing unless the playoff miracle would occur.
1) This note is the empty netter of the bunch.
Draft position as of now shows this news- despite the Devils awesome string of wins,their point number is 72 at this writing.
That total ties them with Atlanta (who has one game in hand) in the standings and would put them at either 6th or 7th in the draft.
Considering the Devils usual drafting spot,this would be a chance to add a player that could truly pay dividends in a few years and as I fully expect for this season to be an aberration,a rare opportunity.
However,the Devils are just one point behind St.Louis,could pass Atlanta easily and a long streak could pass Toronto (4 behind),Columbus (5) and maybe even Minnesota (6).
Suddenly the sixth pick has become the tenth or eleventh.
That is far better than usual,but could be far better as well.
2) However,the Devils could also gain a spot or two.
The Islanders are just two points behind and they have played well of late and Florida is four back of the Red and Black.
The Devils could fall to the fourth pick,but no lower as Ottawa,Edmonton and Colorado are far ahead (or behind perspective depending) of the pack.
The further that you fall,the better the lottery chances are and the chances lessen for a team behind you to leap over you.
3) The Devils also would not need to rush Zach Parise back into action
In the playoff chase,both the team and Parise are trying to get the star winger back into action.
This could be helpful,but it could also hurt the 11-12 Devils,if the hurry causes a setback for Parise.
Considering the state of the team now,I fail to see a huge upside unless a dramatic change is in order..
4) With that settled,Jacques Lemaire can continue to give plenty of ice time to the building blocks of the future such as Mattias Tedenby and Jacob Josefson without worrying about mistakes that are bound to happen.
The occasional scratches of the pair (More often Tedenby) would be unnecessary and their development can continue to grow in situations that will not decide seasons.
5) Maybe even a few players from Albany can get their feet wet before the season ends.
Alexander Urbom started the season in the NHL and he may have to be counted on next season,so why not a few games for Urbom under Jacques Lemaire?
I might even add the same for Adam Henrique,who I would much rather see than Adam Mair...
Watching this stunning run of games has almost salvaged this season for me,but if the playoffs are not going to happen,the best things could be some or all of the above....
Photo Credit-AP Photo
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