As of today the NJ devils playoff hopes are on life support. According to Moneypuck.com the odds of the Devils making it to the show sits at 8.5%. After a mostly good week of hockey Devil fans are left thinking "what could have been”? They put together a solid home stretch early by beating the Penguins & the Jets only to follow it up with a dismal performance against the Senators. But then they did something they haven't been able to do all season, they got a shut-out! I know it might not sound like much but the odds of an NHL team getting a shut-out sits close to 15-to-1, or 6.8%. So, if we use these metrics, they have a better chance of making it to the postseason then they do to attain another shut-out. I know what you're thinking; why should I hold out hope when this team has continuously dangled the proverbial playoff carrot on a stick in front of our faces all season, only to see the stick break, and the carrot fall in the mud as we get kicked in the face?
All hope is not lost Devil fans. Sure, they are 5 points out of the last wildcard spot with only 10 games remaining, but the type of run needed isn’t totally out of the realm of possibilities. The 2014-15 Ottawa Senators came back from 14 points back to secure a playoff berth. The 2018-19 St. Louis Blues came back from 11 down to punch their ticket and went on to win it all. Who can forget last year's Florida Panthers team that came back from 9 points down and played their way to a cup final? Did they all have more games to get the job done? Yes...so with 10 games left, it will be nearly impossible.
Let's talk about a few things with even lower odds. Things that seemingly happen every day. Think of all the people in your life that are Polydactyly (born with an extra finger or toe), I'm sure you know loads of people with that extra digit yet the odds of being born with one is 0.2%. Much lower odds than our Devils getting into the playoffs. How about all the times you or someone you know has pulled a hamstring or sustained a concussion while taking care of business on the toilet bowl. The odds of injuring yourself on the throne are a slim 0.010%. You're feeling better about those playoff odds now aren't you? Or all the times you and friends went oyster diving and opened one only to find a valuable shiny pearl inside 0.010% chance. But, not all is sunshine and rainbows. You’re probably saying to yourself Chris, these odds are about as bad as that new therapy dog I bought being allergic to me. You would be wrong, the odds of that happening are 15%. The same odds as giant cicadas covering the summer sky into complete darkness. Let us not forget the old lightning striking twice scenario. Not only are the Devils odds worse than that, they are actually worse than lightning striking your haystack twice and burning down your barn.
So, what do we do with all this information? It would be a shame to get nothing from this season. If we can't sneak into the dance, then how about winning the draft lottery for the 1st overall pick in this year's NHL draft? Those odds are about 3%. The odds may not be on the Devils side, but stranger things have happened. If our heroes in red and black can squeeze an extra toe into their skate or take a nice poop without incident, while stringing together some consistent hockey over the next 4 weeks, and maybe a bout of explosive diarrhea wreaks havoc on the Flyers, Capitals & Red Wings dressing rooms, they can sneak into the postseason.
In closing.. Just like when C3PO told Han Solo, "the odds of successfully navigating an asteroid field is 3,720 -to-1"... the response will always be: "Never tell me the odds".