New Jersey Devils: Will Corey Booker, Jeff Vanderbeek Drama Overshadow Game 3?

Despite the Devils successful season and huge win in game one of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Florida Panthers, game three at Prudential Center tomorrow may be overshadowed for all the wrong reasons.

The drama between Newark Mayor Corey Booker and Devils owner Jeff Vanderbeek continues through it's second week, and it has taken away the headlines from a team that rolled into the playoffs with a six-game winning streak.

After a week of bickering between two businessmen and a court ruling that will make the city of Newark pay $600,000 to the Devils, Booker has decided to take away police from the arena for tomorrow's game.

"It would be nice to have more revenue from the arena so we could have hired more cops," Booker told NJ.com. "We believe that the Devils should be stepping up like other arenas in the region to provide security for their fans."

The move actually went into effect before last weekend's Fan Appreciation Day game against the Ottawa Senators. Fans complained about the lack of police around the area to allow pedestrians to cross the busy streets and protect those walking to Penn Station.

This will be the first playoff game the Devils have hosted since the 2009-2010 season when they were eliminated by the Philadelphia Flyers in the first round. New Jersey missed the playoffs for the first time in 15 years last season, and this has made fans excited to see their favorite team back in the postseason.

Newark has never been considered a safe area in New Jersey, and the lack of police around the arena will only make things worse for fans attending the game. Prudential Center is expecting a large crowd, and the addition of fans with the reduction of police will only lead to disaster.

With all the attention on the top-seeded New York Rangers, it has been hard enough for the Devils to get the media coverage they deserve. With Booker and Vanderbeek at odds, it will only push New Jersey farther back in the headlines as the series continues.