Posts Tagged ‘stanley cup odds’

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NHL Stanley Cup Odds for 2011-2012 Season

July 22nd, 2011 by Brent | Comments Off | Filed in NHL Betting

The Stanley Cup odds are now released for next season.  Actually they have been released at a lot of the sports betting sites just a day or so after the Stanley Cup Finals, but I don’t like taking a look until after seeing some free agent signings.  There have actually been quite a few big trades and signings in the NHL this off season, and it has kept the summer somewhat interesting for hockey and NHL fans.

The Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins are listed tied for third in terms of odds to win the Cup at 10/1, while the Western Conference champions Vancouver Canucks are a top the odds at 7/1.  Sandwiched in the middle between the two is the Pittsburgh Penguins at 8.5/1, as they look to actually have their two star players (Crosby and Malkin) in next years post season.

Here is a list of the top 15 teams to win the Stanley Cup next year (odds wise) in the 2011-2012 NHL season:

Vancouver Canucks – 7/1
Pittsburgh Penguins – 8.5/1
Boston bruins – 10/1
Washington Capitals – 10/1
Philadelphia Flyers – 11/1
San Jose Sharks – 12/1
Detroit Red Wings – 12.5/1
Chicago Blackhawks – 15/1
Los Angeles Kings – 17/1
Buffalo Sabres – 20/1
Nashville Predators – 20/1
Tampa Bay Lightning – 20/1
Anaheim Ducks – 30/1
Montreal Canadiens – 30/1

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So who would I choose for the 2011-2012 NHL season?

To be honest, I would probably wait until the signings are done and I have a better feel for the rosters of each team – which probably will be a week or so before the season starts.  But if I had to place a bet on one of these teams with the given odds I would go with the Tampa Bay Lightning right now at 20/1.  A pretty good payout for a team that made it to the East Finals last season, and signed their young goal scorer, Steven Stamkos, to a 5 year deal.  Although this kid won’t be playing for a contract this year, he has a ton of heart and wants to be one of the best – expect a big year from him again.  Some of the Tampa Bay players are aging and I think they need to make a push for the Cup again in the next two years.  I wouldn’t be surprised if Steve Yzerman made some big acquisitions near the trade deadline to make a run at the Stanley Cup.

Try placing a bet on the Tampa Bay Lightning at 20/1 odds – although you will have to wait nearly a year to cash it, it may be worth it!

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St Louis Blues Stanley Cup Odds 2010-2011

December 8th, 2010 by Derek S | Comments Off | Filed in NHL Betting

The St. Louis Blues will be looking to rebound after the team missed the playoffs last season. The Blues took a huge step qualifying for the playoffs in 2008-09, but injuries and struggles held the team to 9th in the Western Conference last season. Now with key veterans Keith Tkachuk and Paul Kariya gone, the young core will be counted on to return St. Louis to the playoffs. The goaltending could be among the best in the West as the Blues acquired Jaroslav Halak from the Montreal Canadians. The playoffs are certainly within reach, whether they have the experience to go deep or not is another questions. A key veteran or two at the trade deadline could go a very long way with this squad.

St. Louis must contend with a very competitive Western Conference and indeed the Central Division is among the toughest as well. The Blues must hope to avoid the injury bugs that held them out of the playoffs last year. The Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks should be locks to make the playoffs and will battle for the division lead. St. Louis should be able to take third but the Nashville Predators and Columbus Blue Jackets could give them a challenge. Neither, the Predators or Jackets, have the depth St. Louis has though, and that should work in the Blues favor during the grind of the regular season.

Blues Stanley Cup Odds

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Up front St. Louis boasts a lot of offensive ability, they just need to show better consistency. Youngsters T.J. Oshie, David Backes, David Perron, and Patrik Berglund provide a highly talented nucleus that could make the Blues competitive for years to come. Perron hit 20 goals for the first time and while Oshie has yet to reach expectations, he had a career high 48 points last season. Meanwhile Backes fell from 31 goals to 17, and Berglund also went from 21 goals to 13 in 2009-10. They weren’t the only ones to struggle as veteran Brad Boyes scored only 14 goals after notching 76 in his first full two season with St. Louis. Fellow veteran Andy McDonald lead the team with 57 points last season and could see a significant increase in production if some of the others continue to improve, while Alexander Steen had a career best 24 goals and 47 points that may be the upper limits of his abilities and don’t expect him to surpass those numbers this season.

The defense is very much like the offense, highly talented, inexperienced and streaky. Erik Johnson had a career best 10 goals and 39 points but so much more has been expected. Roman Polak and Barrett Jackman provide plenty of stability in their own zone and Eric Brewer can be one of the top defensive defenseman in the league but injuries have hampered his effectiveness the last few seasons. Carlo Colaiacovo has proven to be a reliable two-way defenseman for the Blues and had his best season posting 7 goals and 32 points, look for him to again see power play opportunities with St. Louis. Finally Alex Pietrangelo has been highly touted since being drafted 4th overall in 2008. Look for him to finally push for full time duties with the Blues this season.

As stated, the addition of Jaroslav Halak gives St. Louis potentially one of the best goaltenders in the West. Halak’s impressive playoff run with Montreal last season earned him much respect around the league and was being compared to Habs legends Ken Dryden and Patrick Roy. His regular season numbers where very impressive as well as he posted 26 wins and a .924 save percentage in 45 games. He must now prove it wasn’t a fluke and he can show that same level of play over the course of more games. He should fit in nicely and with the Blues solid defense will probably fair quite well. Ty Conklin has proven to be a quality backup goaltender and can handle the starting duties in a pinch.

With the improvement in goal and if St. Louis can avoid injuries the Blues will expect to make some noise this season, and should be able to. Indeed the team should be able to improve both goals for and goals against this season. Another failure to reach the post season could force the Blues to decide which youngsters they think are the real deal, and which ones might not ever reach their expectations. The talent is certainly there, whether the players can live up to expectations and show greater consistency remains to be seen. If not, a few players could be singing the Blues next summer as they find new homes.

There are lots of online betting sites that accept Stanley Cup wagers.  Check out these NHL betting sites where you can place a bet on the Blues to win the Stanley Cup… my favourite is Sportsbook.com!

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Nashville Predators Stanley Cup Odds 2010-2011

December 8th, 2010 by Derek S | Comments Off | Filed in NHL Betting

The Nashville Predators will once again look to be in the playoff mix come April, as they have for the last several seasons. Don’t expect much beyond that though as the lack of forward depth will continue to keep them from proceeding past the 1st round. The Predators finished 18th in the league last season with just 217 goals for. They also only had two players surpass the 20 goal mark, and while captain Jason Arnott had 19 goals in just 63 games he was dealt to the New Jersey Devils in the off season. The good news for Nashville though, is Patric Hornqvist may be the real deal after breaking out with 30 goals last season. The Predators will definitely need him to repeat that feat, as scoring help doesn’t appear imminent.

One of the things that could hurt Nashville’s playoff aspirations is that they play in the tough Central Division, not to mention a tough Western Conference. The Chicago Blackhawks are still Stanley Cup contenders despite losing several players from last year’s team. The Detroit Red Wings have been and still remain one of the toughest playoff teams of the 21st century. The much improved St.Louis Blues have added some more experience to their talented core of youngsters, and if goaltender Jaroslav Halak can continue his magic then a playoff spot is almost assured for St.Louis. Even the Colombus Blue Jackets have enough talent to make a press for the playoffs, which could leave the Predators as the odd team out.

Predators Stanley Cup Odds

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As I said, depth in scoring is certainly a sore spot for Nashville. After Hornqvist’s 30, the next highest returning scorer was Martin Erat with 21. The Predators will need players like Steve Sullivan, J.P. Dumont and newcomer Matthew Lombardi (who had 19 goals last season with the Phoenix Coyotes) to all step up their goal production. Colin Wilson, Cal O’Reilly and the enigmatic Sergei Kostityn will also be players to watch, as they all have the talent to help the offense and could be looking at a break-out season of their own. Marcel Goc, Joel Ward and Jared Smithson are all valuable role-players but don’t expect much offensively.

Defense has been an area of strength for Nashville for several seasons and again looks solid. Shea Weber and Ryan Suter continue to lead the way, as the two have become an integral part of the Predator’s back-end. They have combined for 178 points over the last two seasons and are one of the most productive pairings in the NHL today. Francis Bouillon has proven to be a reliable defender and will help provide leadership to a young, talented squad. Kevin Klein has lots of two-way potential but must rebound after being a minus 13 last season and Cody Franzen is coming off a 21 point rookie season. These two combined with Weber and Suter give Nashville plenty of scoring from the blueline. Finally rugged defenseman Shane O’Brien can play a very physical game and help keep the front of the Predator’s net clear.

Nashville has a history of producing quality goaltending and Pekka Rinne continues that trend, coming off a career best 32 wins last season while posting an impressive .911 save percentage. The only downside to Rinne is his tendency to lose consistency if overused. That shouldn’t be too much of a problem for the Predators though as Anders Lindback appears to be a quality backup. Between Rinne (6’5”) and Lindback (6’6”) Nashville certainly won’t give opposing shooters much net to shoot at. The Predators have a history of not staying with a goaltender for too long, so if Lindback or prospects Mark Dekanich and Chet Pickard appear to be making progress and possibly ready for regular NHL duties Nashville could split the games amongst it’s goalies or even move Rinne.

A playoff spot isn’t a guarantee, but look for the Predators to be in the hunt for a spot in April. Even if scoring continues to be a struggle for Nashville the defense and goaltending are too strong for the Preds to not be competitive. That lack of scoring could however be enough to keep them out of the post season. The depth in goal and on defense could be used to obtain another scorer or two which would certainly go a long way in helping them not only reach the playoffs but perhaps even win their first series in franchise history. A Stanley Cup might also not be that far of a stretch when you consider defense and goaltending win championships. But with just too many talented teams in the Western Conference, getting to the playoffs could be an accomplishment, anything after that would be a major triumph.

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San Jose Sharks Stanley Cup Odds 2010-2011

November 1st, 2010 by Derek S | Comments Off | Filed in NHL News

After making the semi-finals in last year’s playoffs, the San Jose Sharks are hoping they can finally start to shed the label of playoff chokers. That could be easier said then done though, as the Sharks no longer have the services of goaltender Evgeni Nabokov. Nabokov has started the majority of San Jose’s games since 1999/2000. Also gone, is veteran and future hall of fame defenseman Rob Blake, and defensive center Manny Malhotra. The sharks could be hard pressed to replace these players but still have plenty of talent to help fill the voids.

The Sharks will have some serious competition in the Pacific Division this year. The young guns in Los Angeles showed last year that they are ready to make some noise and should make a serious push to dethrone San Jose’s hold on the division. Meanwhile Phoenix, Anaheim and Dallas all look to potentially be in the playoff mix. Even if they don’t win the division the Sharks should be looking at another 100-point season and trip to the post season, but if the goaltending doesn’t hold up they might be on the outside looking in come March.

San Jose finished 4th in goals for last year, so scoring certainly doesn’t appear to be a weakness, but the Sharks still really heavily on the top two lines. San Jose scored 257 goals and only 90 of those didn’t belong to the top six forwards, so injuries could be a major concern. Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Dany Heatley are as good as any line in the league, and while Heatley and Thornton combined for only five goals in the playoffs, the Sharks still made it to semi-finals. The second line of Joe Pavelski, Ryan Clowe and Devon Setoguchi give San Jose an extremely effective secondary scoring unit. Pavelski could be on the verge of a career year after leading the sharks with 17 points in 15 playoff games last year. Logan Couture and Jamie McGinn could help provide some offensive depth while players such as Torey Mitchell, Scott Nichol and Jamal Mayers are all solid role players.

After Dan Boyle the defense is dependable but unspectacular. Boyle will once again lead the power play, but is always a defensive liability. Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Douglas Murray, Niclas Wallin and Kent Huskins are all capable of solid defensive play which should help keep the goals down, none are going to light it up offensively. The Sharks will look to youngster Jason Demers and Derek Joslin to help Boyle provide some offensive spark from the blueline. Demers appears the most ready after 21 points in 51 games last season. Look for San Jose to try to make a move for a puck moving defenseman if neither Demers or Joslin can produce.

So after 10 seasons the Sharks will start the season without Nabokov. To replace him the Sharks will use the tandem of Antero Niittymaki and fellow Finn Antti Niemi. Niittymaki started last season in Tampa Bay posting 21 wins and a 2.87 goals against in 49 games. Despite leading Chicago to the Stanley Cup last year, Niemi is still an uncertainty. He had 26 wins and a 2.25 goals against in 39 games last year but looked rather shaky at times, including the Cup finals. If either goalie struggles the other will get the bulk of the playing time, but until then they will split the duties.

With the offensive abilities of the top two lines and steady, reliable defense the Sharks should be able to ride the goaltending tandem into the playoffs. Once there, it will be up to one of the goalies to take control and solidify the starter job. The top line will also have to shake their labels as playoff underachievers. If Thornton and Heatley are able to produce in the playoffs as well as they do in the regular season they may not need either goalie to be great, as Chicago proved last year. After all, Team Canada won with Thornton and Heatley, why not San Jose.

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