Changes in NHL Rosters can bring value in Futures Betting
The Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks, Chicago Blackhawks, Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals and Buffalo Sabres are the sexy picks to win this year’s edition of the Stanley Cup because of what’s seen as very positive changes in each of the respective organizations.
Oddsmakers with various online sports betting sites will have to be adjusting the odds on each team up to accommodate for this additions. Check around, as betting what team will win the division, the conference and the Stanley Cup can vary from sportsbook to sportsbook. Interestingly, the defending Stanley Cup Champion Bostonb Bruins and the Western Conference Champion Vancouver Canucks are not on this list.
The LA Kings seemed to have made the biggest splash, with the additions of centre Mike Richards and winger Simon Gagner, and now have a dynamic 1-2 punch up the middle along with All-Star Anze Kopitar. The San Jose Sharks added another dynamic puck rushing defenceman in Brent Burns to go along with perennial All-Star D-man Dan Boyle. The Hawks bolstered their lineup with lots of muscle and size, adding Dan Carcillo, D-man Sean O’Donnell and skilled forward Andrew Brunette.
Over in the Eastern Conference, the Philadelphia Flyers traded away both Richards and winger Jeff Carter, but added much in budding superstar Brayden Schenn in the Richard deal, and added goalie Ilya Bryzgalov, and wingers Maxime Talbot and Jaomir Jagr. Washington added a veteran netminder in Tomas Vokoun and size with gritty forward Joel Ward. Finally, the Buffalo Sabres really added to their roster by adding swift puck moving defenceman Christian Ehrhoff, rugged rearguard Robyn Reghr, and the pugnatious Ville Leino.
Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets meet in NHL Central division battle
The Chicago Blackhawks and the Columbus Blue Jackets will play this weekend. Both of these teams are over the .500 mark on the season, but it look as if the Blackhawks will be the only one of the two teams to qualify for the playoffs.
Chicago, the defending Stanley Cup champion, opened the season at 5-1 betting odds to repeat but is now down to 18-1 in NHL Betting.
The Blackhawks are currently in position to grab the final playoff spot and they are seen as a very dangerous team. While they have not been as consistent as they would have hoped to be, they are a very strong team all around.
The Blackhawks are 4th in the league in goals per game, averaging 3.1 goals each contest. They are also a solid defensive team, allowing just 2.7 goals per game to their opponents. The key to the offense of the Blackhawks has been their power play. They are the 2nd best team in the NHL on the power play and they convert 24 percent of the time.
The Blue Jackets have a solid record, but they are very mediocre in every category. Despite winning more games than they have lost, they surrender 3 goals a game while they only score 2.6 goals per game. The Blackhawks should be able to put this team away. The Blackhawks really need to win games like this if they hope to hold onto the final playoff spot.
The Blue Jackets will need a stellar performance or they will fall further down the standings after this game. The game will be held in Columbus on Friday, April 1st at 7 pm Eastern Time.
NHL Central division foes Detroit Red Wings, Nashville Predators meet Saturday
Two Central Division rivals will clash on Saturday night when the Detroit Red Wings travel to Nashville to play the Predators. With the season winding down, many teams are fighting for their playoff lives and Nashville is no exception to this rule.
Currently, Nashville sits only one point out of the eighth and final playoff spot behind Calgary, but does have two games in hand. Nashville was one of the surprise teams early in the season, and even led the Central Division for some time.
However, in the last month or two, the Predators have fallen on hard times and find themselves having to fight for every point they can gain in the standings. This late season matchup with Detroit was viewed a month or so ago as a potential game that could help decide the Central Division race, but now it is just essential to Nashville’s playoff hopes.
Detroit on the other hand continues to roll towards another playoff appearance. While the Red Wings were once comfortably atop the Central Division, the Chicago Blackhawks have closed the gap to just six points thanks in large part to a 7-1-2 record in their last ten games. Detroit has struggled as of late only going 4-4-2 in their last ten, but with two consecutive wins the Red Wings may be back on track.
Saturday’s contest should be a hard hitting, fast skating game, as both teams would love to win and get the two points in the standings.
Nashville Predators at Chicago Blackhawks
The Nashville and Chicago Blackhawks will square off on Sunday. These two teams are division rivals and are fighting to overtake the Detroit Red Wings in the Central Division. The Blackhawks are currently 23-18-3 on the season, while the Predators are sitting at 23-13-6 on the season.
These teams match up against each other very well. The Predators are one of the best defensive teams in the NHL. They are only allowing 2.3 goals per game, the second best average of any team in the league. Much of their success defensively has come because they have a fantastic penalty kill percentage. They are 3rd in the NHL in penalty kill percentage at 85.7%.
The Blackhawks are almost the opposite of the Predators in every way. The Blackhawks have one of the best offenses in the league. They are averaging 3.1 goals per game this season. That is good for the 5th best average in the NHL. The key for the Blackhawks offensively has been their fantastic attack on the power play. The Black Hawks have the best power play conversion percentage in the NHL at 24.8 percent.
It will be very interesting to see if the defense of the Predators will be able to stand against the offense of the Blackhawks. One other factor in this game will be whether or not the Predators can get going offensively. While they only allow 2.3 goals per game, they have only managed to score 2.5 goals per game this season.
This game will take place in Chicago on Sunday night.
In Chicago – This Friday – Vancouver Canucks Vs. Chicago Blackhawks
In Chicago this Friday, the Chicago Blackhawks will lock horn with the Vancouver Canucks. As of Tuesday morning both these teams have won back to back games and both looking like they are on the upswing. Even though the Blackhawks seems to be improving as the season goes on they will have a tough game earlier against the Blues.
On the season to this point the Canucks are 12-7-3 while the Blackhawks are 13-11-2.
For this game NHL betting Odds have not so far been posted.
This season in the NHL, the Canucks have been one of the very best teams. The one aspect that they do not have in their game is weakness. When the power play is concerned this is the best team all around. At 25.3 percent, they have the highest conversion rating of any team on the Power Play and also they have a penalty kill percentage of 86.9. On a nightly basis these things facilitate this team win games.
The Canucks have only allowed 2.6 goals per game on defense (8th in the NHL) and have averaged 3.1 goals per game on offense (6th in the NHL). As Chicago has a comparatively poor Penalty Kill percentage of 78.7 percent, their offense could be even better in opposition to the Blackhawks. If they want to keep up with Vancouver, Chicago will need to play smarter.
In order to step up and score early against the Canucks, the Blackhawks do have a solid offensive attack and they will need the offense. Even though the Chicago will need to play at a high level to take out Vancouver, this is a winnable game.
NHL Stanley Cup Finals – Game 6 – Preview – 2010
On Wednesday, June 9th, the Philadelphia Flyers and Chicago Blackhawks will meet up, in Philadelphia for Game 6 of the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals. The Chicago Blackhawks currently lead the series 3-2, after an offensive explosion in Game 5. So far, the home team has won each game of the series. Chicago will do its best to clinch the Stanley Cup, while Philadelphia hopes that trend continues.
As Philadelphia managed to score 4 goals in Game 5, their offense is not really a problem. However, to say the least, their defense is below average. They are coming off a game where they allowed 7 total goals. Both Michael Leighton and Brian Boucher were used by Philadelphia in Game 5, and neither got the job done. Peter Laviolette, coach for the Flyers, has not revealed which of his goalies will start in Game 6.
Chicago needs Antti Niemi to step up and shutdown Philadelphia's offense, if they want to clinch the 2010 Stanley Cup in Game 6. Chicago’s offense really is not a problem, as they demonstrated in Game 5. On the other hand, Philadelphia simply has to figure out a way to slow Chicago down. Where they give up seven goals, they cannot expect to win a game.
Chicago shows up motivated like they were in Game 5, if Philadelphia can figure out their struggles at goalie, Game 6 of the 2010 Stanley Cup finals should be excellent. For Philadelphia, at this point is win or go home.
Game 6 – NHL Playoffs – Chicago Blackhawks vs. Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks head back home to face the Chicago Blackhawks in a pivotal Game 6, after staving off defeat with the help of Kevin Bieksa in Game 5. On Sunday by scoring 2 goals, Bieksa, online betting favorite, lead the Canucks to a 4-1 victory. Bieksa, and the rest of the Canucks, will have to try to stay hot in order to stave off elimination on Tuesday night.
After winning at Chicago, Vancouver has to be overflowing with confidence, but they will need to turn that confidence into results on the ice if they want to continue the quest for their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. On Tuesday night, the Chicago Blackhawks have to hope that Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews show up ready to play, or they could be in trouble. It won't be easy for Chicago to pull out a win in Vancouver, but Chicago has never been better on the road than they were this season.
On Tuesday night at 9:30PM ET, hockey fans will be tuned in to Versus to see if Vancouver can continue their run to the Stanley Cup or if their dream gets derailed by Chicago. Either way, it will be a great game, and both teams should show up ready to play. In a way that nothing but an NHL playoff game can, it is a classic 2 seed (Chicago) vs. 3 seed (Vancouver) match up that will definitely deliver the fireworks.