There are plenty of ways to analyze which teams will make it into the playoffs at different points in the season. Many talk about the impact of the standings at Thanksgiving, and why it’s a good barometer for who makes the postseason six months later. We can always look at the standings and try to assess the best contenders.
Some look to the betting market to see something they may not. The top contenders right now are the Colorado Avalanche, who are around 3/1 on most markets. Behind them are the Carolina Hurricanes (between +600 and +900), the Tampa Bay Lightning (+700 to +1000) and the Vegas Golden Knights (+800 to +1000).
If you go down to 10th on the list, you’ll find the New Jersey Devils. That’s right, Vegas thinks that the Devils are one of the 10 most likely teams to win the Stanley Cup this season. In some sportsbooks, they are tied with the Minnesota Wild.
That’s very ironic, since the Wild are the team going all in and the Devils are the team trying to desperately get back into a playoff spot. The Devils are on the outside looking in after losing three games in a row. All of these came after Jack Hughes returned early from his injury.
Yet, they have the same (or better in some books) than the Wild, who just traded for Quinn Hughes.
Honestly, it makes sense to us on the surface. The Devils are looking for one or two pieces to get themselves back into contention. With Jack Hughes back, the wins should continue like they did earlier in the season. Just about everything that could go wrong this season has gone wrong short of a season-ending injury. And yet, they are two points out of a playoff spot.
If the Devils make the playoffs, they’d need to beat the likes of the Washington Capitals or New York Islanders. The Wild have to beat the Dallas Stars in the first round. If they somehow beat the Stars, they have to face the favorites to win it all. The Wild have to bounce the Colorado Avalanche, unless by some miracle the Wild Card team does it for them.
The path to a championship is Final Fantasy-level hard, while the Devils have to finally beat their rivals, the Carolina Hurricanes, and then it might be smooth sailing for New Jersey.
We aren’t in the same boat as the oddsmakers. We don’t see a Stanley Cup contender in the Devils, but with the weird mixture of the stars coming back from injury, Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen returning to form, and the likely trade that’s coming soon, the Devils are an interesting contender. Yes, maybe more interesting than the Minnesota Wild.