Mammoth Roll Into Jersey With Early-Season Momentum and Goaltending Edge

The Devils host Colorado on Tuesday night, and if you're trusting the early returns, this one's all about netminding and momentum. Sebastian Cossa has been a brick wall through his first start, posting a ridiculous .944 save percentage while Jake Allen sits at a respectable but mortal .920 for New Jersey. In a league where goaltending decides tight games, that's not a trivial gap—even three games in.

The Mammoth arrive at 2-1 with a goal differential that screams "competent hockey team": 4.0 goals for per game against just 1.67 allowed. Meanwhile, the Devils are flipped upside down at 1.5 for and 4.0 against, which is a polite way of saying they've been leaky and toothless. Sure, it's a microscopic sample, but the market hasn't fully adjusted—Colorado's sitting at plus-money despite the superior underlying numbers.

DarkHorse likes Mammoth +105 with moderate confidence (3/5). The logic is sound: elite early goaltending, better goal differential, and a price that still reflects last season's priors instead of this week's reality. Road spot be damned, the value's with the visitors. If Cossa stays hot, the Devils might be in for another long night.