New Jersey Devils vs. Philadelphia Flyers - NHL Playoffs Game 2



The New Jersey Devils and the Philadelphia Flyers face-off in Game 2 of their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal matchup this Tuesday night at the Wells Fargo Center with Philly holding a 1-0 series edge. The puck is set to drop at 4:30 p.m. (PT) and the game will be broadcast nationally on the NBC Sports  

Series Overview-New  

Fatigue may have been an issue in New Jersey’s 4-3 overtime loss as a 145 road underdog in Game 1 of this series after needing overtime in the final two games of its first-round series to get past Florida in seven games. The Devils won Game 7 of that series in dramatic fashion with a 3-2 victory as 109 road favorites in over four periods of play. They will quickly have to find their legs for Tuesday to avoid another  

Zach Parise gave New Jersey an early lead on Sunday a little over two minutes in the game and his team went on to outshoot the Flyers 15-6 in the first period. The Devils managed just 11 additional shots from that point on could not capitalize on Petr Sykora’s game tying goal midway in the third period. Martin Brodeur turned way 32 of the 36 shots he faced, but has already proven he can be scored upon when the right amount of pressure is  

Series Overview- 

The well-rested Flyers appeared to have trouble shaking off the rust from an extended layoff after ousting Pittsburgh in six games, but it did not last long. They took a 2-1 lead around the nine-minute mark of the second period and outshot New Jersey 15-4 in the third period to take control of the game. Claude Giroux scored his seventh goal of the playoffs on a power play to give his team a 3-2 lead in the third, but the real hero was Danny Briere, who scored the game-winner twice in overtime. The first goal was waved-off after replay showed that Briere kicked the puck in the net, but there was no doubt about his screaming slapshot two minutes  

Philadelphia still has to be concerned about the play of Ilya Brzygalov between the pipes. He ended the Penguins series with a goals-against-average of 3.89 and managed to give-up three goals on 26 shots in this game. The Flyers have been able to mask his difficulties with 4.86 goals-per-game average of their own, but he is going to have to tighten things up on Tuesday  

Betting Trends

The Devils are 10-4 in their last 14 games overall but just 1-5 in their last six playoff games as underdogs. The total has ended as a ‘push’ in three of their last four playoff games as underdogs.  

The Flyers are 1-4 in their last five conference semifinal games but 13-5 in their last 18 games as favorites. The total has gone ‘over’ in six of their last eight games at home.  

Head-to-head, New Jersey is now just 8-17 in the last 25 meetings and 3-10 in its last 13 games in Philadelphia. The total has stayed UNDER in four of the last seven games but it went OVER the six-goal line in Game 1.  

The Prediction  

The Devils have struggled on the road in Philadelphia in the past and Tuesday night will not be any different as the Flyers capitalize on a golden opportunity to expand their edge in this series with the win.

Philadelphia 4      New Jersey 2


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