Underrated and Overrated NHL Teams

If you read this blog often then you probably know I’m an avid NHL bettor who does fairly well (I’ve been on a cold streak lately, but still up on the season).  One of the best ways to make money betting on NHL games is to wager on teams that are underrated in the eyes of the public and the bookmakers.  If you followed my NHL betting site you would notice I wager on the same teams very often and against the same teams very often.  That’s because my views of NHL teams differ from the publics views and if my views are more correct then I will be winning more money than I lose online.  Here are a few teams that I find underrated or overrated at the moment.

Underrated – Ottawa Senators

The Senators were ranked 30th on almost every power ranking that you could find prior to the season.  They are now around 22 or so on most, but when looking at the odds you will still notice that the Senators are almost always the underdogs because they public and the bookmakers still don’t believe in the team.  Just today the Senators at home was a pick’em game against at Lightning team that is 4-8-2 on the road and on a 3 game losing streak.

Underrated – St. Louis Blues

The Blues have been great since changing coaches this season and they have the personnel to continue to perform.  The odds haven’t quite caught up to their recent success, so you can still find some great odds for the Blues.  I expect the Blues to make the playoffs and put up a good showing once there.

Overrated – Colorado Avalanche

The Avs are the worst team in the league according to me.  They are on a 3 game winning streak right now, but I have made a lot of money betting against the Avs this year.  I haven’t bet against them recently because the odds had caught up with them when they were playing so poorly, but now that they have won some games I expect some sharp bets against the Avs in the future.

Overrated – Winnipeg Jets

The Jets are another team that I generally don’t like to bet on.  I see the Jets as a bottom 3 team in the Eastern Conference, but with all of the press surrounding the team this season it seems like they are favourites or considered contenders in games when they really shouldn’t be.  In fact, last Tuesday the Jets were hosting the Senators and even though I was out of town the odds were so good that I went online to one of my favourite iphone betting sites and placed a bet on the Senators at +110 to defeat the Jets.

The teams that are underrated and overrated can change quickly throughout the season and as an NHL bettor you have to be ready to change with them.  The NHL is a very streaky league, especially for young teams and one thing that I take into account when placing my bets is a teams current streak and how they are playing heading into the game.  Overrated/underrated views is just one ingredient to use when placing NHL bets.

Thoughts and Surprises One Month Into The NHL Season

I haven’t made a post in a while, but that’s not to say I haven’t been following the NHL season this year.  I’ve been a little bit busy with some other NHL related sites so I haven’t had the chance to post here at Hockey Opinions as much as I would like.  That being said my main NHL site NHL Betting Tips is doing really well mainly because my daily NHL predictions have been on fire, at least for the past two weeks.  I’m currently up over 10 units on the season and I suggest anyone who is interested in betting on hockey follow my plays because I’m on a heater at the moment.

The first month has been very eventful with a lot of surprises in the NHL.

Ottawa Senators Surprise October

Everyone had the Sens pegged in as #30 in the preseason power rankings and in the first 6 games all of these so called “experts” were patting themselves on the backs saying “I told you so” and “I’m a genius”.  Being a Sens fan it made me a little sick to see everyone telling me that they were going to be one of the worst teams in NHL history, that they expected them to get the fewest points of any team since the lockout.  Ridiculous comments and I knew better, but I still wanted my Sens to step up and deliver.  Lucky for me it happened and the Senators pulled off a 6 game winning streak to finish the month with a (7-5-0) record for 4th in the Eastern Conference.  They even topped it off with a win over the rival Leafs.  The Senators have been preaching “compete” throughout the winning streak and they did just that.  Their methods of victory were almost more impressive than the actual results.  Of their 7 win this season 3 came in shootouts (2 as the result of epic 3rd period comebacks) and 2 came within the last 5 seconds of regulation to not allow their opponents a point.  In the Columbus game they were down by a goal with 40 seconds left before scoring 2 in regulation to keep the Blue Jackets without a win.  It’s been epic and everyone is stepping up including Gonchar and Kuba who were horrible last season.  It will be interesting to see how November shapes up.  They lost their first one against the Bruins, but here is hoping they bounce back.

Colorado Avalanche Surprise October

I was chirping experts for having the Sens as 30th on the power rankings so now is when I have to swallow my pride and admit that I had the Avs as 30th and they proved me wrong in October.  The Avalanche finished the month with a 7-4-0 record that included a 5 game win streak that had them sitting at 5-1-0 after 6 games.  A big thanks has to go to Semyon Varlamov who is 5-3-0 with a .924 save percentage and a shutout.  I thought it was one of the dumbest trades in history to trade for Varlamov and his nearly $3,000,000 contract for a first and second round pick when he has never even been a legit starter in the NHL.  Not to mention that I thought the pick would at least be a lottery after the way the Avs finished last year.  So far so good though for Varly and the Avs, but I have to say I still have my doubts and I expect them to plummet at some point soon.

Boston Bruins Surprise October

Who would have thought the defending Stanley Cup Champions would be in 2nd last place in the league after October with a 3-7-0 record.  I for one did not, but that’s where the defending champs found themselves.  That being said the Bruins were losing tight games, are in the top 5 in shots per game and the top half in shots against per game.  The Bruins beat the Sens to start out November the way they wanted, but they do have some catching up to do, which is hard in this league, even only after 1 month.

Those are my thoughts on a few surprises from the first month of the NHL season.  I am going to be continuing to put up my NHL predictions at NHLBettingTips.com so check out the site daily if you like to bet on hockey!

How Will the Ottawa Senators Do This Season?

Most so called “experts” have the Senators finishing near the basement of the Eastern Conference, and even the league.  Even NHL12 has the Sens as clearly the worst team in the league in terms of team stats (which is a real bummer because it makes it much more difficult for me to play with my team) – that’s right the Sens are my team so take this article with a grain of salt.  Personally, I think the Sens have a legit shot to battle for a playoff position until the end of the year.  I have them slotted in around 8th – 10th in terms of the Eastern Conference power rankings, and as you can see, that 8th place is in there so they have a shot at the playoffs.

Here Is Why

The Senators top 7 defencemen are actually very solid and I wouldn’t trade them for the top 7 d-men on at least 20 other teams in the league.  You have Erik Karlsson, a young guy with about as much playmaking talent as a d-man could have.  He will make sure that the Sens score powerplay goals and you can expect his plus-minus to be much better this year, as his defensive game improves.  Add in Sergei Gonchar, who we all know can be a top guy on any team if he plays like he has throughout his career and the Sens powerplays should have two legitimate quarterbacks.  Then you have Chris Phillips who has been a top shutdown guy his entire year and who anchored his team to the cup finals only a few years ago.  Alright, I don’t like Filip Kuba, but that is the only slot in the top 7 I’m not fond of.  Matt Carkner is the perfect 6th d-man on a team, with a toughness and presence that can help against rough opposition, and then you have two rookies who are ready for the big time.  David Rundblad was the Swedish Elite League’s top d-man last season and you can tell by watching him play that he will be another great puck mover from the back-end and he is a 3rd legit powerplay quarterback.  Then Jared Cowen, who is showing shades of Tyler Myers, is another big guy who can shutdown down low and has already showed he has the ability to provide offense with his two goals in the first preseason game.  The Sens are fine at the back end and they will get the puck to their forwards.

The goaltending situation is also solved.  Craig Anderson slipped a little at the start of last season, but the Avs are a worse team than the Sens and he showed in his games with the Senators he still has what it takes.  Anderson is a legitimate number 1 goaltender who has the ability to steal games, a few of which will be needed for the Senators to make the playoffs this season.

The Problem

The problem lies in the forwards.  Spezza can’t do it all.  Alfredsson and Michalek need to play at their best and then other goals have to come from the likes of Foligno, Butler, Regin and hopefully Filatov.  A few of these lesser known Senators will break out this year with the absence of Fisher and Kelly, but this is necessary for the team to win games.  I hope that GM Brian Murray doesn’t just keep Greening and Condra at the big club because he signed them to one-way contracts even if guys like Da Costa, Filatov, etc are more deserving and are better pieces to the puzzle.  The Senators need goals from up front.  Spezza and Alffy can’t do it all.

I think the Senators will surprise some people this year.  They have nothing to lose, with a young team that is eager to win and many players that know how to win from their Binghamton Calder Cup last season.  I for one am going to check out some sports gambling sites and hopefully find some great odds for the Senators throughout the season, due to the fact they are being underestimated by the masses.

Teemu Selanne Season Prediction – Any Left In The Tank?

Teemu just announced that he will be rejoining the Ducks this season and Ducks fans everywhere must be letting out a huge sigh of relief.  Take away the Ducks top 4 forwards and they are a poor team.  Reduce that amount to 3 high end guys, including their 2nd leading scorer from the season and a guy who scored a goal per game through 6 games of the playoffs and they aren’t looking too great.  With Selanne the Ducks once again have a shot at making the playoffs, although they need many more pieces if they want to go far.  That being said the Ducks need the Selanne circa last season, not a slower ‘Finnish Flash’ who isn’t at 100% after knee surgery.

But if Teemu says he’s ready to play, you better believe he’s ready to play.  Putting up 80 points in 73 games at 41 years old is unheard of.  In fact Gordie Howe and Johnny Bucyk, with Howe being the only to finish in the top 10 in scoring (Selanne was 8th even after missing 7 games).  In the playoffs he kept up to speed scoring 6 goals and adding an assist in 6 games.  Not to mention how many late game-tying goals he scored in the final stretch when Anaheim was gunning for a playoff spot.

If the Ducks can get anything close to the Selanne of last year they will be laughing.  Personally I don’t know why a player would retire after one of the best seasons of their career.  Obviously he still has gas left in the tank and the ability to help his team.  He might as well pad his stats and cement his place as one of the top NHL players in the history of the game.

I expect Selanne to start up right where he left off last season, scoring goals and amazing fans.  Not to mention those fans will be in his home town of Helsinki because the Ducks open their season off there (that might have helped push him in the right direction towards returning to the team).

If Selanne can stay healthy I predict similar numbers to last year.  Something along the lines of 29 goals and 45 assists I would expect, with at least half of those goals being on the powerplay.  I still don’t plan on placing a division winners bet on Anaheim to take the Pacific this season, but if  Selanne’s return will likely make many online sports bettors at least take a second glance at the Ducks Stanley Cup betting lines various online sportsbooks will be offering.

If nothing else fans around the NHL are thankful that they get to watch the skill and finesse of the Finish Flash for at least one more season.  I for one am much more likely to stop at the channel at a Ducks game now that he has confirmed his return.

 

Shea Weber’s Arbitration Decision Right On The Money

Shea Weber and the Nashville Predators couldn’t have been further away heading into Tuesday’s arbitration hearing.  Sources said that Nashville was offering around $4.75 million per season, while Weber was asking for $8.5 million.  As it turned out Weber’s request was much closer to what the arbitration hearing decided Weber was worth when he was given $7.5 million for the season.  Since this was a team-appointed arbitration hearing (which can only be done once in a players career), the Predators didn’t have a choice to walk away from the contract and make Weber a free agent.  That being said there was no real chance that the Predators would have walked away from such an elite player and the captain of their team.  Even if the owners decided they couldn’t afford to keep Weber, I can think of 29 other teams in the NHL that would be chopping at the bit to get Weber on the team, and these 29 teams would have happily paid the $7.5 million contract, while also giving Nashville many assets in return.

Weber Deserves His $7.5 Million

With this 1 year, $7.5 million contract Weber has become the highest paid defenseman in the National Hockey League.  As for the people who think that the highest paid defenseman should be the best, that theory is flawed because there are many things to consider.  First of all, when the other d-men earned their contract (their season(s) leading into that contract and the salary cap at the time).  And second of all, the length and situation of the contract.

Shea Weber

Last season, Weber had 16 goals and 48 points with a +7 rating and was a finalist for the Norris trophy, coming 2nd in voting, just 9 points back of Nicklas Lidstrom.  This Norris candidacy shows that Weber does more on the ice than just put up points, he is an all around defenseman that usually matches up against the top players on opposing teams.  Since the 06-07 season, Weber is tied with Mike Green for the most defenseman goals.  Weber was also a key player in helping Nashville make it to the second round for the first time in team history, he scored 5 points and was a +3 in 12 games.

Weber earned $7.5 million for 1 season.  Salary Cap $64.3 million.

Dion Phaneuf

Phaneuf scored 60 points, including 17 goals and had a +12 rating the season before his contract, which began in the 08-09 season.  Phaneuf also had 7 points in 7 playoff games and was a -2, but the Flames lost in the first round.  Phaneuf was a very similar player to Weber, but he did score a few more points, and he was also a runner up for the Norris, just like Weber.  One year contracts are usually more lucrative for the player because there is no job security and the cap hit percentage of 11.66% of the cap, is very close to the 11.46% percentage of the cap that Phaneuf’s salary demanded that year.

Phaneuf earned a cap hit of $6.5 million for 6 seasons.  Salary Cap $56.7 million.

Zdeno Chara

Chara signed a contract prior to this season that holds a $6.917 million cap hit with a 7 year length.  That being said Chara earns $8.5 million this year and the final 2 years of his contract only earn him $9 million total, which shows that this is another one of the front heavy contracts that have become popular in the NHL.  Chara is currently 34, so this contract brings him to his 41st birthday.  There is a good chance that Chara doesn’t play the final two years of his contract, which is probably why the amount is lower.  With this theory (if Chara does not play the final 2 years of his contract), he is earning $7.3 million per season, which is very close to what Weber earned.  Add in the job security Chara receives by signing long term and I would say Weber would have much preferred the contract that Chara received.  Chara is also a very good comparison, because he was also a Norris trophy candidate and his contract begins the same year as Weber’s.

Weber’s cap hit is the highest in the league, but it’s hard to look at just the cap hit nowadays when so many teams are doing the front heavy contracts.  Weber is actually the fifth highest paid defenseman this season, behind Chara ($8.5 million that we mentioned before), Pronger ($7.6 million), Keith ($8 million) and Ehrhoff ($10 million this season with a $4 million cap hit – don’t know how teams get away with this).

Weber is worth every penny and when you include the variables such as the length (1 year means no job security), the salary cap (cap increased $4.9 million over just last season) and the other comparable players front heavy contracts you can see that Weber could have easily justified the $8.5 million that he was asking.

It will be interesting to see how the Nashville Predators do next year.  I’m not going to go and put down $100 on them winning the cup, but with Weber in place they could definitely win a lot of games and once again return to the playoffs.  A new betting tool that will be fun to try next season is live hockey betting.  When you’re watching a hockey game you can see the momentum swings, as well as key injuries or anything that could affect how the game may turn out.  Now with in play hockey betting you can use this information to make a profit!

2012 Stanley Cup Favourites

The Boston Bruins have won the Cup, the entry draft has completed and free agent frenzy is winding to a halt.  The only place I can get my NHL fix is thinking about next season and which teams have the best shot at lifting the Stanley Cup.  I check out 5Dimes.com to see the Stanley Cup odds for next season and it really got me thinking about which teams have a legit shot.  Here are a few teams I like to go far next season and who I will be placing wagers on because their odds are too good to pass up:

Chicago Blackhawks @ +1500

The Blackhawks are the 8th favourites to win the Stanley Cup next season and I personally have them slotted much higher.  I don’t necessarily think they will finish atop their division or even have home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs, but the Blackhawks have the pieces in place to be a contender every year.  If they score the goal in overtime of game 7 against Vancouver this season I can guarantee that their odds would be closer to 10/1 right now.  People are quick to forget how a team played and instead just remember that they lost in the first round.  The Blackhawks have the top two lines in the NHL, with possibly the exception of San Jose, and their top defensemen are elite and will be hungry to get back to the top.  The loss of Brian Campbell will hurt this team more than most people think, but Nick Leddy is ready to step up with more ice time and Hjalmarsson should play better than he did last season when he let his play slip slightly.  The additions of Brunette, Carcillo and Mayers should bolster the teams depth and tenacity up front, but it really comes down to the fact that Kane, Toews, Hossa, Sharp and Bolland are just too good.  Corey Crawford is no slouch in goal either.  If the Blackhawks can get the best out of their players and add a bit more depth on defense they should have a very good chance to win the Cup this season.

San Jose Sharks @ +1200

The Sharks are the 6th rated team according to the oddsmakers.  They have made the Conference Finals two years in a row, but haven’t put up much of a fight at that stage.  The Sharks were just too slow and lacked the depth on defense both years.  The addition of Brent Burns should help the defense and take some of the responsibility away from Dan Boyle, while the Havlat for Heatley trade will bring more speed and and greater drive to win when it matters most.  The Sharks still have some positions open for depth forwards and they could do with adding a solid shutdown defenseman with speed.  Niemi is solid in goal, having already won a Stanley Cup, so it’s really the depth up front and the defensive d-men that this team is lacking in order to become a Stanley Cup Champion.  I have confidence that Doug Wilson will address these needs.  I’ve liked what he’s done so far this summer.

For Those Interested…

Here are the odds for the other 8 from the top 10 at 5Dimes.com.  Once it gets past them there really is no hope for finding a Cup Champion.

• Vancouver Canucks +675
• Pittsburgh Penguins +850
• Washington Capitals +1000
• Boston Bruins +1100
• Philadelphia Flyers +1100
• Detroit Red Wings +1250
• LA Kings +1700
• Buffalo Sabres, Nashville Predators, Tampa Bay Lightning +2000 each

**On an unrelated note a friend of mine is starting a Financial Spread Betting website. Just wanted to give him a little shout out.

San Jose Sharks Win the Havlat for Heatley Trade

The San Jose Sharks and Minnesota Wild once again came out of nowhere announcing a blockbuster deal last night that will send Dany Heatley to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Martin Havlat (the two teams dealt Burns for Setoguchi a few days earlier).  I’ve taken a look at this deal from a variety of perspectives and have to say that the Sharks definitely seem to have made a solid move here, but the Wild also needed a shake up and if they can get the best out of Dany Heatley the deal could work for both teams.

The Money

Dany Heatley has 3 years left on his deal that carries a cap hit of $7.5 Million, while Havlat has 4 years left on a deal that has a $5 M cap hit per season.  This more than compensates for the $0.5 M extra the Sharks took on with the Burns for Setoguchi swap and leaves the Sharks with $2M of space left to work with.  This cash can be used to add some depth to the bottom 6 forwards as well as add some stronger defensive d-men for crucial situations (the defense of the Sharks were outplayed against the Canucks this playoffs).

Winner: San Jose Sharks

The Needs

Doug Wilson came out and said that the Sharks needed to add speed to their top 6 forwards and Marty Havlat is one of the quicker players in the league and has breakaway type speed.  Needless to say that Dany Heatley’s game is not built around speed and it seemed like he lost a step the past couple seasons.  With Brunette likely to not resign in Minnesota the Wild needed a similar player to score goals around the net.  Heatley can do this and he also has a superior shot to Brunette if he can get to the open spots.  Koivu is known more of a hardnose working type player that has the skills to score, but by no means is he known as your typical playmaker like Heatley has had with Thornton and Spezza over the past several seasons.  Havlat and Koivu never really had a chance to mesh their styles of play because the Koivu/Brunette/Miettinen line was so strong and had been together for several years.  Heatley should definitely get the chance to play with Koivu and it will be interesting to see if the two mesh.

Winner: Remains to be seen

Better All Around Player

Martin Havlat is a very underrated player in the league for a variety of reasons.  Number one Havlat is known as a player who is always one hit away from injury.  That argument may not be fair as he has adjusted his game in recent years and has averaged 77 games each season over those past few seasons.  Havlat has also never played with as talented as players as himself.  In Minnesota Havlat was not on the top line due to their previous chemistry and instead usually lined up with Latendresse, Clutterbuck or Brodziak.  In Chicago it was much of the same with Havlat playing mostly with Dave Bolland, Andrew Ladd and other second tier players compared to himself (and Kane, Toews and Sharp), yet Havlat still led the team in scoring in both the regular season and the playoffs.  Even back in Ottawa Havlat was generally the 3rd RW on the depth chart behind Alfredsson and Hossa.  Havlat has the ability to make players around him better and has shown throughout his career that he does not need superstar teammates to produce.

Heatley on the other hand has typically had top tier linemates and it seems like his best days are behind him.  Heatley set the bar pretty high in Ottawa with a high points per game output of about 1.25 points/game, but this has dwindled of late and last season he only managed 0.8 points per game and even less in the playoffs.

Havlat will be able to play with any of the solid top 6 forwards on the Sharks, while it remains to be seen if Heatley will produce without an elite playmaking center.

Winner: San Jose Sharks

Playoff Performance

Havlat lives for the playoffs and he stated that playing for a top quality team and being able to play in the playoffs was the reason he waived his no movement clause.  If you watched any of the Blackhawks Conference Finals run in Havlat’s last year with the team you will know he brings it when it matters most.  His 15 points in 16 games led the team (even though he missed a couple games in the Detroit series from the Kronwall hit – which he did try to comeback from the next game showing his heart).  In his last 26 playoff games Havlat has 28 points and many of these were very important points for the team including a few series winning goals that I remember (overtime against Calgary in round 1 with the Blackhawks, overtime against Philly in round 1 with the Senators – just off the top of my head).

Heatley had a horrible playoffs last season scoring 9 points in 18 games and just not looking dangerous whatsoever.  He did have a good playoffs when the Senators made the Cup Finals a few years back, but Heatley just doesn’t seem to be the same player with the same drive.

Winner: It’s hard to say when we will likely only see Havlat in the playoffs over the next few seasons, but I’m sure he won’t disappoint – San Jose Sharks

I for one see this as a great move for the San Jose Sharks and I am even going to go as far as place a wager at an online betting site for the San Jose Sharks to win the Stanley Cup next season with the help of Havlat and Burns!

2011 NHL Draft Predictions

The Stanley Cup has been won the by the Boston Bruins and teams are already looking towards next season.  First on the docket for setting up a solid team for the future is the 2011 NHL entry draft, which is being held in Minnesota this season.  The consensus number one selection seems to be Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, but the next several picks are up in the air and anything can happen at an NHL entry draft as we have seen in the past.  Here are my predictions for the top 10 picks of the draft.

1. Edmonton Oilers –> Ryan Nugent-Hopkins

Nugent-Hopkins seems to be the consensus number 1 for this draft.  He is not considered the most NHL ready, but his skill and vision have him pegged as having the most potential to be a superstar in the league.  The offensive upside is there, but he will have to put on a bit more weight and muscle before he should be ready to really contribute and compete in the NHL.  The Oilers are one of the few teams in the league that may have room for him on the top 2 lines right away with Gagner or Horcoff possibly moving to the wing.  But only expect him to play if he is receiving at least 15 minutes a game.

2. Colorado Avalanche –> Gabriel Landeskog

The most NHL ready player in the draft will step right into the Avalanche lineup and help a very weak left wing corps where Cody McLeod is the top LW.  The forwards in Colorado are very poor and picking Landeskog is the easiest way for the Avs to move past the poor trade that sent Stewart and Shattenkirk to St. Louis for Eric Johnson and Jay McClement.  Landeskog is a fierce competitor who will likely become the captain of this team in the near future.

3. Florida Panthers –> Jonathan Huberdeau

It’s between Huberdeau and Larsson for the Panthers and I think not making the playoffs with Bouwmeester then losing him for nothing will leave a sour taste in their mouth, which should cause the Panthers to steer clear of another highly touted defenseman.  The Panthers need a player who can fill the stands and help them score goals and Huberdeau should be that player in a year or two.  He needs to put on some weight, like Nugent-Hopkins, but he has the offensive upside and the vision to get the Panthers fans out of their seats.

4. New Jersey Devils –> Adam Larsson

The Devils should be a force next year, but when you look at their defense the talent is lacking.  The Devils have a solid top two lines, however they were not able to score many goals last season (finishing last in the league by quite a margin).  The top d-man on the team only scored 23 points and in the speedy NHL today offense often starts from the back.  Larsson is poised with a strong break out pass that should help the Devils right away.

5. New York Islanders –> Dougie Hamilton

The Islanders are very poor defensively and Hamilton is the perfect shut down d-man that should bring toughness and grit to their lineup.  The Islanders have to build their team and a solid defender that can log a lot of minutes and be on the plus side of even strength hockey is exactly what they need.

6. Ottawa Senators –> Sean Couturier

The Senators are very dry up the middle after elite center Jason Spezza.  Mike Fisher must be replaced and if you look at their depth chart at the moment you will not be impressed with the names you see.  Couturier has dropped off from battling for the number one ranking earlier in the season, but he is a big body that is able to make plays and protect the puck.  He needs to work on his skating in order to make an impact in the NHL.

7. Winnipeg Jets –> Ryan Strome

The Jets are in need of some additional skill in the middle of the ice.  They have solid wingers, but these players need a playmaking center to get them the puck.  I’m not saying Strome will make the team out of camp, but he has a legitimate chance and should go to the Jets this draft.

8. Columbus Blue Jackets –> Ryan Murphy

Ryan Murphy is a smaller defenseman, but his offensive upside is huge and he possesses a wicked shot that should score him plenty of goals in the NHL, especially on the powerplay.  The Blue Jackets will jump to add an offensive d-man to their fairly unskilled backend.

9. Boston Bruins –> Mika Zibanejad

This player has been playing with men in the Swedish Elite League and he has not looked like a boy among men.  He should transform into a solid NHL power forward and this fits in perfectly with the Boston Bruins style of play.

10. Minnesota Wild –> Nathan Beulieu

Beulieu will be the best player left in the draft at the 10th position and you can expect the Wild to scoop him up here.  Nathan is a strong puck moving defensemen that will be an elite powerplay quarterback, but he will need a few years to make the jump.  The Wild have a fairly strong team so they will not need to push anybody into the lineup right away.

The draft should be interesting and there should be some odds up soon.  If I see betting odds up as to which player will go first overall I will post them on this article.

But for now it’s back to watching Wimbledon for me.  I placed a bet on Roger Federer to take the Championships this year and he looked very good in his opening match today.  I’m getting more into tennis betting and if this interests you I suggest you check out my other website, www.OnlineTennisBetting.com!

Can Luongo Bounce Back?

Roberto Luongo made 30 saves on 38 shots in game 3 of the Stanley Cup playoffs in Boston.  Alain Vigneault apparently did not feel that his goaltender needed to be pulled from the game when it got out of hand.  This could be a tactical decision to show his goaltender that he and the entire team will be sticking with him throughout this series no matter what.  In game four in the Chicago series, Luongo let in 6 goals on 28 shots before being pulled in the third period.  Luongo did not bounce back favourably allowing 4 goals on 12 shots and being pulled early in the second period in game 5.  In game 6 of that series Vigneault went with Schneider, who played a decent game before being injured when he was beaten on a penalty shot by Frolik.  Luongo only allowed one goal in that game, but it was an important one scored by Ben Smith in overtime.  It took these 3 straight losses before Luongo stepped up his game allowing only 1 goal in game seven against the Blackhawks.

Since that first round series Luongo has looked fairly sharp, playing solid for the most part, while allowing a few soft goals here and there.  In the 8-1 shellacking by Boston, however, Luongo did not look sharp at all.  He should have saved at least half of the 8 goals and I am interested to see which Luongo we see tonight.

I half expect the Bruins to come out with another high scoring affair, which is why I’m looking at the -1.5 line for the Bruins tonight at +248.  This line is from 5Dimes and could be considered similar to spread betting bonuses because the juice is reduced, which makes this likely the best Bruins puck line you will find.

Luongo has shown the ability in the past to bounce back from bad games, but he has also shown many instances where he plays just as bad the second time around.  Which Luongo will we see tonight in Boston?  Who do you think will show up?

Boston Bruins Will Win Stanley Cup Final

The Boston Bruins will win the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals over the favourite Vancouver Canucks.  Thats a bold statement considering the Canucks are -230 favourites to win the series, while a $100 bet on the Bruins would win $210 for a payout of $310.  I feel that the Bruins have as good, if not a better chance than the Canucks to win this series.  There are a variety of reasons, each of which will be explained in this article.

Sedin’s Shutdown

The Sedin’s only managed to score a combined 19 points in their first 13 games, while they put up 18 in their last 5.  This may seem like they are heating up, which should be a bad thing for the Bruins, but if you look closer you will see that the reason the Sedin’s were able to dominate the Sharks is because the Sharks do not possess any elite shutdown defensemen (Dan Boyle is an elite d-man, but he is known more for his offensive abilities).  When you look at the Chicago series the Sedin’s had to contend with Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and David Bolland, who successfully shut them down.  In the Nashville series Shea Weber and Ryan Suter are two elite defensemen who did the job.  I expect Chara and Bergeron to be able to slow down the Sedin’s and if they can keep them to under around 0.8 points per game that is in the Bruins favour.

Kesler Injury

Reports indicate that Kesler may be nursing a groin injury that he suffered in game 5 against the Sharks.  He is expected to play, but will he be able to be the force that he has been throughout these playoffs.  Will he be able to stop the hot David Krejci and Nathan Horton top line for the Bruins.  Kesler is a huge part of this Canucks team and if the Sedin’s get shut down the team counts on him for a lot of offense.  We will see how his groin holds up and if he is able to go 100%.

Tim Thomas vs Roberto Luongo

I give the edge to Thomas.  Neither goaltender has been to this stage before, and neither has looked tremendous getting here this year.  Sure, both have had good games, but each have had bad games and let in some bad goals.  I don’t expect the goaltenders to really decide this series, but if I was going to choose one that has the ability to steal games if need be it would be Thomas.

These three reason are why the Bruins will have a good chance at defeating the Canucks in this years Stanley Cup finals.  I’ve already done my hockey betting on this series at 5Dimes, which offers reduced odds for the series (means I make an extra $0.10 on the dollar).  It should be interesting and I’m excited for this to get started tonight.

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