Tip: Akira Schmid's successful playoff debut was exactly what the Devils needed

The Devils have been in the back seat throughout the series against the New York Rangers, who completely dominated the first two games. However, in the third game, the Devils managed to turn the tide and eventually scored a long-awaited 5 vs 5 goal - the first in the series. Goaltending has also been a concern, leading the Devils to turn to 22-year-old Swiss Akira Schmid for his playoff debut, and boy did he shoulder that responsibility with aplomb. What a way to make a playoff debut! Schmid was sensational in Game 3 against the Rangers, turning away 35 shots, 12 of which were high-danger chances. He never seemed to be out of position and exuded a sense of calmness that made his teammates feel confident and free to play their game. This level of performance is something that Schmid has consistently demonstrated for the Devils all season long. In his 18 regular season games, the 22-year-old had a 2.13 goal-against average and a save percentage of .922.

Can the Devils build on their last victory?

It's clear that the Devils have a difficult task ahead of them. The Rangers' experience and skill have really put the Devils to the test, and without their last victory, this series would have felt impossible to turn around. However, thanks to Schmid's game-changing performance combined with goals from Jack Hughes and Dougie Hamilton, hope is now alive.

For the first time in the series, the Devils took control of the game and made better decisions with the puck. However, they still need to work on avoiding offensive zone penalties, as they committed too many in this game. Fortunately, it didn't cost them this time. The Devils have found success away from home by keeping things simple. If they can continue with that, they could very well come back home with a tied series.

Special teams

The series has largely been defined by special teams play, with the Devils finding themselves shorthanded 10 times in the first two games and the Rangers capitalizing with four power-play goals. In Game 3, the Devils continued to struggle with penalties, with several players including Michael McLeod, Ryan Graves, Kevin Bahl, Jesper Bratt, and Timo Meier all taking turns in the box. However, the penalty killers, led by Marino, Jonas Siegenthaler, Erik Haula, and Nathan Bastian, were perfect on the night and played a major role in securing the team's victory.

If the Devils are to tie the series, they must stop committing these unnecessary penalties. The Rangers are too skilled not to capitalize on the Devils' mistakes, and their lack of experience in this area is showing at times. However, thanks to Akira Schmid's solid performance in goal and strong penalty killing, the Devils have given themselves a chance to spoil the party for the Madison Square Garden crowd once again on Monday.

Conclusion and prediction

It's not always with the greatest enthusiasm that I place certain bets. Those who have followed me over the years know that I'm not a big fan of placing too much value on form and previous performances. It's easy to overvalue these types of factors. When we sum up the first three games, it's hard to argue that most things don't speak in favor of the Rangers in Game 4. However, our mission is to try and identify where we believe the value lies in a game, and it's rarely on the team "everything speaks for," especially when they're heavy favorites. Ahead of the series, the Devils were favorites to advance, and in my book, I still value them as an evenly-matched or slightly better team than the New York Rangers, despite the results in the first three games. Therefore, my conclusion is to bet on the New Jersey Devils ML +140 at Caesars.