Welcome back to NHL Predictions, where the still-contending Detroit Red Wings are squaring off with the New Jersey Devils. We’re looking at one team hoping to gain ground in the late-season Stanley Cup Playoff race. Meanwhile, the other team is looking forward to where they will land in the NHL Draft Lottery.

NHL Predictions With the Red Wings and Devils

Season Series: 1-1

Puck Drop: 5:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)

How to Watch: FDSNDET, MSGSN

The Red Wings put together a stellar performance in a blowout win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday. With momentum in their corner and playing a weaker opponent, the Wings can realistically hang onto their playoff lives for another day.

Credit Image: © Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune via ZUMA Press Wire

New Jersey’s season has been forgettable. With former general manager Tom Fitzgerald gone, but with talent on board, a retool is the likeliest option here. Jersey still has a strong core, but the rest of the lineup is playing for a reason to stick around. That alone won’t make them a pushover against Detroit.

Team – GP – Pts – RW

BOS – 79 – 96 – 31
OTT – 79 – 94 – 36
DET – 79 – 91 – 30
NYI – 79 – 91 – 29
CBJ – 79 – 90 – 27
WAS – 79 – 89 – 34

Winning is now non-negotiable for the Red Wings

We’re steamrolling into mid-April and the Red Wings are once again not in control of their playoff destiny. Detroit needs to finish ahead of the Ottawa Senators to snag the second spot in the Wild Card. The problem is that the Sens are hot, and have a three-point lead with three games left.

The best way for the Wings to overcome this is to win out while the Senators must lose twice. Those losses must come in regulation. If Ottawa stays hot, then the Wings could still punch their way in if they win out and the Bruins lose out, with at least two losses in regulation.

If the Wings lose to the Devils, then their only hope is if they win their last two contests and the Senators lose out in regulation. That said, it goes far without saying that the stakes couldn’t be higher for the Wings.

Devils Can Play Put the Red Wings One Step Closer to Infamy

When the Red Wings last made the playoffs in 2015-16, few would have thought they may own the NHL’s longest current playoff drought. With the Buffalo Sabres breaking their 14-year dry spell, it’s the situation Detroit’s in, and the Devils are one win away from putting the Wings closer to such infamy.

Expect a playoff atmosphere in this one, as it gives every Devils player in that locker room even more of an incentive to play hard. And unlike the Wings, the Devils haven’t been that bad since March 1st, going 11-7-1 in that stretch.

NHL Predictions

The Devils may have the better track record as of late, but the Wings have momentum in their corner. Detroit is coming off one of their best wins of the year, and with the playoffs on the line, it’s too good of an opportunity to pass up.

Prediction: Red Wings 5 — Devils 3

Prop Bets

Dylan Larkin remains the heart and soul of the team throughout this playoff race and he’s coming off a hat trick in Thursday’s win. For New Jersey, Jack Hughes will keep giving it his all until the final horn sounds.

Main Photo Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

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