Posts Tagged ‘stanley cup’

NHL Free Agents Still Available

August 20th, 2010 by Matt | Comments Off | Filed in NHL News

Even with the free agent season being over a month and a half old there are still some talented hockey players on the open market that have not found homes yet. Due to these individuals still being there are teams that still could potentially improve their overall team roster before the season gets under way. Through analyzing the players still available and teams that are on the border line to either make a serious run for the cup or simply make the playoffs it has to be argued that a signing or two of the remaining UFA’s could be the answer for some GMS.

Most hockey fans know by now the availability and summer of news regarding Ilya Kovalchuck and the New Jersey Devils. Although it is still speculated that he will re-sign in New Jersey, there are still the rumours of the LA Kings re-entering the sweepstakes, as well as the New York Islanders and the KHL making pitches for Kovalchuck before the season gets under way. Moving past Kovalchuck, teams could still improve their team rosters with players such as Paul Kariya, Jose Theodore, Willie Mitchell, Kim Johnson, and Slava Kozlov. Other than Kovalchuck, these other players all can be had my teams at a reasonable cost. As of August 20, 2010 Kariya is still rumoured to be re-joining his best friend Teemu Selanne in Anaheim while Willie Mitchell has confirmed he has had “positive discussions” with the Washington Capitals.

Most would not argue against if it was not for the salary cap these once elite players would all have found NHL clubs for the upcoming season. However, there are teams that right now are over the salary cap maximum, and many others very close to the salary cap which limits their flexibility once the season starts. If the season was to get underway tomorrow there would currently be four teams over the cap being Boston, Calgary, Chicago and Vancouver. The league average for salary cap availability right now is slightly over eight million.

If one decides to further analyze this, then there are some definite teams that could potentially climb up the ladder and either contend for the cup or at least make the playoffs with a signing of a Willie Mitchell, Paul Kariya or Slava Kozlov. Teams such as the Colorado Avalanche who still have about 25 million in cap space remaining could improve quickly and improve their odds of making the playoffs. Other teams who are predicted to make playoffs that have significant cap space include the St. Louis Blues (19 million), Nashville Predators (15 million), Tampa Bay Lightning (14 million), and the Phoenix Coyotes (15 million).

Of these teams with large cap space only one is an Eastern conference team. With the new ownership and GM Steve Yzerman in place this is a team that would be a great sleeper pick for bet makers to bet they make playoffs or potentially make a threat for the Stanley cup. They have ownership willing to pay the price now, but at the same time a very intelligent GM that has been around a winning organization for years and years. If Yzerman is not signing one of the remaining larger name FA’s, then perhaps he will be able to pull off another trade similar to the Simon Gagne trade to help cap tight teams relieve some salary.

Either way the Lightning are a team that cannot be taken lightly this year and have great opportunities to improve and improve quickly.  The Tampa Bay Lightning 2011 NHL Stanley Cup Odds are listed at +3000 as of August 21st, which in my opinion is some pretty good value.  For every $10 bet on the Lightning to win the Cup you would win $300!  You can bet on the NHL at Sportsbook.com and get $250 Free!!

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Time for Lord Stanley To Come Back North of Border – Canucks Cup Odds

August 17th, 2010 by Matt | Comments Off | Filed in Opinion

As the season fast approaches more and more of the hockey experts of beginning to weigh in or their thoughts regarding the favourities to win the next Stanley Cup. Although it is still quite early it is also a great time for those sport betters to submit their pick for the 2010-2011 Stanley Cup winners as odds are still very reasonable!

What makes this season even more exciting is the strong possibility of a Canadian team winning the Stanley cup. There are very high expectations  being placed on the Vancouver Canucks. Many experts across North American including the Hockey News have them predicted to at least make the Stanley cup finals.   Other consensus picks to be contenting for the Stanley cup include the regulars such as; the Penguins, Washington, San Jose, Detroit and Chicago. Some teams of interest this year include the LA Kings, Tampa Bay and St. Louis who have young talent many believe are ready to take it to the next level!

One of the main reasons many including myself believe now is the time for the Canucks is through the importance they have placed on solidifying their defence through the acquisitions of both Dan Hamhuis and Keith Ballard. With arguably one of the best three goalies in the league and now a deeply improved defence it will make this team very hard to beat simply because of their back end. With one more year of experience for their star players Henrick and Daniel Sedin as well as potential 2011 all-star Alex Burrows they will have one of the most dominant first lines in hockey on offense as well. If Cody Hodgson can make the team and return to his form from the 2008-2009 campaign he could even be in consideration for rookie of the year honours.

The West will once again be very tough to get through and into the Stanley cup finals however, this may be the easiest year for the Canucks to do it with the Blackhawks and Sharks both losing valuable pieces to their team and the Kings being potentially still a year or two away from greatness. Detroit has made some improvement however not to the magnitude of the Canucks in most expert’s opinions.

Questions will still arise with the Canucks however such as is their coaching, and Luongo’s inconsistency. Cory Schneider who could be a starting goalie in the NHL someday soon will put some competitive pressure on Luongo this year which will keep him on his toes.

Although it is early the early consensus is for the Capitals to play the Canucks in the cup finals which would be a very enjoyable and entertaining series! There are some potential dark horses but these two teams have lots of fire power making them strong contenders and a good risk to take as the next Stanley cup winner.

Sportsbook.com has the Canucks at +1500 odds on winning the Stanley Cup this year – learn more about Hockey Betting!

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2010-2011 NHL Stanley Cup Betting Odds

July 29th, 2010 by Brent | Comments Off | Filed in NHL Betting

The 2010/2011 NHL season isn’t too far off and the online sportsbooks have posted the Stanley Cup odds for each team.  Betting action is rolling in as NHL fans are getting excited for what should another action packed NHL season.  With lots of free agent players being moved around it is always tough to get a real grasp on which teams are going to compete come playoff time, but if you do your research you can always find some NHL teams listed with generous betting odds!

Not surprisingly the defending Stanley Cup champs Chicago Blackhawks are favoured to win the Cup in the 2010-2011 NHL season at +600 (not sure how to read these odds?  check out this sports betting odds explained article), with Eastern Conference powerhouses Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals not far behind, both at +700.

The Philadelphia Flyers come in at +1400 to win the Cup this year after losing to the Blackhawks in the finals.

Teams at the bottom of the list at +10000 odds to win the Stanley Cup are the Blue Jackets, Oilers, Panthers, Wild and Islanders.  The Atlanta Thrashers aren’t far behind at +9000, while the Maple Leafs are down there with +7500 odds.

You can bet on who will win the 2011 Stanley Cup at the most popular online betting site Sportsbook.com where you will even receive a Free $250 Bonus when you sign up for an account!

Full 2010-2011 NHL Stanley Cup Betting Odds:

Chicago Blackhawks Cup Odds +600
Pittsburgh Penguins Cup Odds +700
Washington Capitals Cup Odds +700
Detroit Red Wings Cup Odds +1300
Philadelphia Flyers Cup Odds +1400
San Jose Sharks Cup Odds +1400
Vancouver Canucks Cup Odds +1600
Boston Bruins Cup Odds +1800
New Jersey Devils Cup Odds +1800
Los Angeles Kings Cup Odds +2200
Montreal Canadiens Cup Odds +3000
Calgary Flames Cup Odds +3300
Anaheim Ducks +3500
Buffalo Sabres Cup Odds +3500
Ottawa Senators Cup Odds +3800
Click Here For Full and Updated Odds

My Predictions/Bets for the 2011 Stanley Cup:

This year I’m going with the Washington Capitals out of the East at +700.  You know that Alexander Ovechkin and the Capitals will always be tough to beat in a seven game series, and I think this is the year they make it out of the East.

From the West I will be taking the Vancouver Canucks listed at a nice +1600 ($100 bet pays out $1600 in profits).  The Sedin twins seem to get better each year, and the Canucks have done a good job building out a team around them.  If Luongo can get back into his groove I like the chances of the Canucks making a run for it all in the upcoming 2010-2011 NHL season.

Place your bets online at Sportsbook.com and enjoy the NHL season!

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Pens Take It All – What's Next?

June 13th, 2009 by Brent | 1 Comment | Filed in NHL News, Opinion

First things first, congratulations to captain Sidney Crosby and his Penguins for winning the 2009 Stanley Cup. Well done, guys, you put on quite a show. It was a hard fought series, right until the final seconds when goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury had to dive across the crease to rob Detroit captain Niklas Lidstrom of a sure goal. Wondering what Fleury was thinking when all that was happening? Take a look:

Now while Pittsburgh soaks up the next few days, you can guess what the other 29 teams will be thinking about. Next season, starting with the Draft, then the opening day of free agency. You can tell that’s what they’re thinking about just by looking at some of the stories that have been reported in the past few days.

Lets start with the Flyers and their goaltending situation. Earlier this week the Flyers announced the signing of Ray Emery to a one-year $1.5 million contract. Many see it as a low-risk, high-reward kind of deal. I think any time you deal with Ray Emery, the situation is high risk. I’m not saying he’s a bad guy, but he has the capability of bringing down a team from the inside. What’s the best scenario? He has a stellar year, the Flyers go far in the playoffs riding his play, and he asks for major bucks in the off season, or leaves the team. That being said, this is Emery’s second chance at an NHL career, so to speak. He blew his first chance in Ottawa, so you can bet he won’t want to screw up his second chance in Philly. I really hope he stays on his best behaviour and succeeds, I really do. Then today we are hit with another shocker. Darren Dreger of TSN reports that the Flyers are interested in bringing Robert Esche back! He had a stellar year playing in the KHL, posting a 1.87 goals against average and .912 save percentage. If that report turns out to be true, you can kiss Martin Biron and Antero Niittymaki’s butts goodbye.

But then we’re forced to wonder, is a Emery-Esche tandem that much of an upgrade over a Biron-Niittymaki tandem? Is it even an upgrade at all? Sure they save a few bucks under the cap, but is it really worth taking such a risk with your goaltending situation? Only time will tell.

Then there was the Score’s report of Pronger being traded to LA for Jack Johnson and the 5th overall pick in this year’s draft. I saw that as soon as I turned on my TV and sat back, thought about it for a second, then muttered “What the hell is Los Angeles thinking??” Sure, lets trade away the 5th overall pick (Who I have as Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson in the Everything Hockey mock draft) and Jack Johnson, a former 3rd overall pick, for an older Chris Pronger, who has 1 year left on his contract and makes just over 4 million dollars more than Johnson. I really really hope LA has some kind of plan for this, like signing him to an extension and naming him captain or something. Seems to me like they could have just kept Rob Blake, a much cheaper leader.

I said that 29 teams will be thinking of next season already, but one team has a very unique situation. The Phoenix Coyotes aren’t just worried about their product on the ice, they are also worried about where the ice they will skate on will be located. Let me begin by saying I am a completely biased Hamiltonian. I have refrained from writing about the deal because of my bias. I would thouroughly enjoy having an NHL team in this city, as would hundreds of other people I know, but especially me seeing as how it would open all sorts of doors for jobs, especially in the media. So when you make the argument about how moving the team out of Phoenix will take away hundreds of jobs, think of all the jobs it would open up, especially to people like me! We all know what’s happening in terms of the court preceedings and so-on, so I won’t bore you with that. I just want you to know that the fan support for an NHL team in Hamilton is very real. The team will be immensly popular, and the area is a hockey gold mine. Oh…and Jim Balsillie for Prime Minister!

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