Can the New Jersey Devils win the series

The New Jersey Devils and the Philadelphia Flyers where both neck and neck by the end of the regular season with only one point separating both the teams. And now the scenario has changed and the Flyers are only one game ahead from being eliminated. They're having quite a tough time with only three games to go. Now the question is, will the team put an end to their train wreck and keep away from elimination or will they crash out? However the odds are in their favor since the side will be playing two out of the three games at their home turf.

There is a thrilling Eastern Conference semifinal match up coming up with the New Jersey playing against their rivals, Philadelphia Flyers. It seemed that out of all the teams out there Philadelphia was the one, in fact the only one trending towards the Over. Stats showed that they went 4/6 games against Pittsburgh Over the total. Well the game, rather the series was basically towards a total shootout with none of the teams, (Penguins or the Flyers) doing well on defense or goaltending. It shouldn't be said that Philadelphia didn't take enough measures to counter their poor show in goaltending. They had traded away with Mike Richards and Jeff Carter so as they could buy a goaltender, Ilya Bryzgalov. But the player hasn’t lived up to expectations and has not fulfilled promises.

But on the other hand the New Jersey Devils have improved upon their defense and goaltending and this would work in their favor against the Philadelphia squad. The Philadelphia Flyers started off well against the Devils with an emphatic first game 4-3 win in overtime but lost their way in the next three consecutive games losing 4-1, 4-3 OT and 4-2. Now let's take a look at the New Jersey Devils side. They have always been reckoned as the most defensive of the teams but it should be noted that they have quite a strong offence in the form of Zach Parise, Patrick Eliaas and Iyla Kovalchuk.

They have to try and use the defensive side to their advantage under the helm of the veteran Martin Brodeur. In this year's NHL the New Jersey Devils ended up with a top 10 defense spot during the regular season. The Philadelphia Flyers are staring at elimination if their present run of luck continues. The side could try and use the tactics of out shooting the opponent to make up for their weak defense, which in hindsight was the reason they qualified into this round. However the task would be quite an uphill one given the fact that their leading scorer Claude Giroux would be missing the fifth game due to an illegal hit in game number four.

So far the leading scorer has had a good run with eight goals and nine assists from the 10 play-off games. Given the lack of form from of Philadelphia squad and the high spirits that the New Jersey squad is in, it seems that the Devils are the favorites to win the Eastern conference series and also are likely to win the Stanley Cup. However it is the best time for the Philadelphia squad to regain their form and hit back with their renowned over shooting skills. We leave you till next time, with a reminder to place your bets on your favorite teams and participate with BetOnline - our favorite online sportsbook accepting US residents.