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New Jersey Devils: Will Kyle Palmieri Score 30 Goals?

By Steve Ginter

Feb 25, 2017; Newark, NJ, USA; New Jersey Devils right wing Kyle Palmieri (21) skates towards the net of New York Rangers goalie Antti Raanta (32) as Rangers defenseman Nick Holden (22) tries to block during the third period at Prudential Center. The Rangers defeated the Devils in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2017; Newark, NJ, USA; New Jersey Devils right wing Kyle Palmieri (21) skates towards the net of New York Rangers goalie Antti Raanta (32) as Rangers defenseman Nick Holden (22) tries to block during the third period at Prudential Center. The Rangers defeated the Devils in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports /
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After a slow start to the season, and much criticism coming from every which direction, Kyle Palmieri has the only realistic chance for a Devil to put 30 pucks in the pot.

The top line finally looks like it is coming together with Kyle Palmieri, Taylor Hall and Travis Zajac leading the team in points with 44, 44 and 39 respectively. But the statistic that stands out in the group, is Palmieri’s 22 goal. On a team with anemic scoring capabilities, Palmieri is the only guy who could realistically hit the 30 goal mark.

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With 22 goals so far, Palmieri would need to score 8 more goals over a span of 14 games. However, Palmieri has been on fire lately for the Devils scoring 2 Goals in the Devils 5-4 loss to the Arizona Coyotes last week.  In his last 10 games, Palms has a whopping  7 Goals and 4 assists for 11 points.

Remaining Games

Including tonight’s game against the flyers, the Devils have 14 games left, 10 of which come against metropolitan teams (three against the flyers, two against the reigning Stanley cup champion penguins, two against the streaking islanders, one-a-piece against the Rangers, Blue Jackets, and hurricanes. The 4 non-divisional games are the Jets, Leafs, Stars and Red Wings. Scoring 8 goals in those 14 games is tough and improbable, but not impossible.

Next: John Quenneville Gives New Jersey Devils’ Fans Something To Be Excited About

Outside of the Blue Jackets’ Sergei Bobrovsky, who blanked the Devils in back to back games during the two teams’ “home and home”, the Devils aren’t facing top-tier goaltenders, with Matt Murray the only other goalie posting a Sv % in the top 10, but is 16th in GAA. With Kyle Palmieri’s  scorching play as of late, Palms has a legitimate chance at reaching the 30 goal mark for the second season in a row.

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