NHL Betting Update
May 18, 2010
By Bodog
Eastern and Western Conference Finals
Somebody is about to win the Stanley Cup for the first time in a long time.
Will it be the Montreal Canadiens? They?re the last Canadian-based team to lift Lord Stanley?s mug, way back in 1993 with Patrick Roy supplying the goaltending heroics. This year, it?s Jaroslav Halak (.933 playoff save percentage) holding down the fort for Montreal in shocking upsets over the Washington Capitals and the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins. Halak?s next assignment: the Philadelphia Flyers, who last gooned their way to the top in 1975 when the Broad Street Bullies of Dave Schultz and Bobby Clarke won their second of back-to-back Cups.
The championship drought is even worse out West. The San Jose Sharks have yet to win the Cup since joining the league in 1991, while the Chicago Blackhawks are holding onto memories of 1961 with Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita. But the futures market says it?ll be one of these two Western clubs taking the title this season. Here?s how the NHL odds looked going into the conference finals:
Chicago 8-5
San Jose 3-2
Montreal 9-2
Philadelphia 9-2
The series themselves, as you may have gathered from these odds, are very close on paper. The Flyers were the No. 7 seeds in the East and enjoy home-ice advantage over the No. 8 Canadiens, enough to make Philadelphia the slight favorite at ?115 on the series price. Montreal was available at ?105; however, that price was due for a revisit after the Flyers (-145) took Sunday?s series opener 6-0, chasing Halak halfway through the game with four goals on 14 shots. Simon Gagne scored his fifth goal in five games since rejoining the Flyers after missing two weeks with a broken toe. Even more importantly, Michael Leighton made all 28 stops for Philadelphia for his third win in three starts since replacing the injured Brian Boucher (sprained MCL).
The Leighton switch could be the difference in this series. Boucher (.915 playoff SV%) was thrust into the spotlight at the end of the season after injuries to both Leighton (.918 regular season SV%) and Ray Emery, and it was Boucher making the key saves to get Philadelphia into the playoffs and past the favored New Jersey Devils in the first round. But Leighton was masterful in Philly?s improbable second-round comeback over the Boston Bruins with 66 saves on 70 shots. This is what the Flyers have been getting ever since plucking Leighton off the waiver wire in December, after he was let go by the Carolina Hurricanes. Boucher has been more of a mixed bag during his tenure.
The Habs are still the betting story of these NHL playoffs with 10.87 units of profit on their record of 8-7. They?ve been the underdogs in every single game so far, and Halak has been brilliant more often than not. But he may be showing signs of slowing down; the last three games have all gone OVER for Montreal after the UNDER started the playoffs at 8-3-1. The total has gone down steadily from six goals in the Washington series to 5.5 against Pittsburgh and now five goals against the Flyers.
The story is similar in San Jose, where the Sharks and Hawks were each priced at ?110 heading into Game 1 of their Western final. Once again, the road team got the early jump with a 2-1 victory at the Shark Tank. Chicago (+105) received 44 saves from Antti Niemi (.909 playoff SV%) and the winning goal from Dustin Byfuglien, who now has points in four of his last five games after being held off the scoresheet in his first eight playoff appearances this year.
Unlike the Montreal-Philadelphia opener, this Game 1 could have gone either way. Evgeni Nabokov (.907 SV%) stood on his head for the Sharks with 38 saves, and the top seed in the West held a 1-0 lead until Patrick Sharp tied the game about halfway through, admittedly with a bit of a softie on Nabokov?s part. Niemi happened to be the busier and stronger of the two netminders on this day. That could easily change in Tuesday?s Game 2.
Make sure to check out the NHL props page for all our tasty offerings on both conference series. If you had the Flyers to beat Montreal in Game 1 by five goals or more, you got paid out at 30-1. A Chicago sweep over the Sharks out West is worth 11-1 if you bought in before Sunday?s opener.
May 18, 2010
By Bodog
Eastern and Western Conference Finals
Somebody is about to win the Stanley Cup for the first time in a long time.
Will it be the Montreal Canadiens? They?re the last Canadian-based team to lift Lord Stanley?s mug, way back in 1993 with Patrick Roy supplying the goaltending heroics. This year, it?s Jaroslav Halak (.933 playoff save percentage) holding down the fort for Montreal in shocking upsets over the Washington Capitals and the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins. Halak?s next assignment: the Philadelphia Flyers, who last gooned their way to the top in 1975 when the Broad Street Bullies of Dave Schultz and Bobby Clarke won their second of back-to-back Cups.
The championship drought is even worse out West. The San Jose Sharks have yet to win the Cup since joining the league in 1991, while the Chicago Blackhawks are holding onto memories of 1961 with Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita. But the futures market says it?ll be one of these two Western clubs taking the title this season. Here?s how the NHL odds looked going into the conference finals:
Chicago 8-5
San Jose 3-2
Montreal 9-2
Philadelphia 9-2
The series themselves, as you may have gathered from these odds, are very close on paper. The Flyers were the No. 7 seeds in the East and enjoy home-ice advantage over the No. 8 Canadiens, enough to make Philadelphia the slight favorite at ?115 on the series price. Montreal was available at ?105; however, that price was due for a revisit after the Flyers (-145) took Sunday?s series opener 6-0, chasing Halak halfway through the game with four goals on 14 shots. Simon Gagne scored his fifth goal in five games since rejoining the Flyers after missing two weeks with a broken toe. Even more importantly, Michael Leighton made all 28 stops for Philadelphia for his third win in three starts since replacing the injured Brian Boucher (sprained MCL).
The Leighton switch could be the difference in this series. Boucher (.915 playoff SV%) was thrust into the spotlight at the end of the season after injuries to both Leighton (.918 regular season SV%) and Ray Emery, and it was Boucher making the key saves to get Philadelphia into the playoffs and past the favored New Jersey Devils in the first round. But Leighton was masterful in Philly?s improbable second-round comeback over the Boston Bruins with 66 saves on 70 shots. This is what the Flyers have been getting ever since plucking Leighton off the waiver wire in December, after he was let go by the Carolina Hurricanes. Boucher has been more of a mixed bag during his tenure.
The Habs are still the betting story of these NHL playoffs with 10.87 units of profit on their record of 8-7. They?ve been the underdogs in every single game so far, and Halak has been brilliant more often than not. But he may be showing signs of slowing down; the last three games have all gone OVER for Montreal after the UNDER started the playoffs at 8-3-1. The total has gone down steadily from six goals in the Washington series to 5.5 against Pittsburgh and now five goals against the Flyers.
The story is similar in San Jose, where the Sharks and Hawks were each priced at ?110 heading into Game 1 of their Western final. Once again, the road team got the early jump with a 2-1 victory at the Shark Tank. Chicago (+105) received 44 saves from Antti Niemi (.909 playoff SV%) and the winning goal from Dustin Byfuglien, who now has points in four of his last five games after being held off the scoresheet in his first eight playoff appearances this year.
Unlike the Montreal-Philadelphia opener, this Game 1 could have gone either way. Evgeni Nabokov (.907 SV%) stood on his head for the Sharks with 38 saves, and the top seed in the West held a 1-0 lead until Patrick Sharp tied the game about halfway through, admittedly with a bit of a softie on Nabokov?s part. Niemi happened to be the busier and stronger of the two netminders on this day. That could easily change in Tuesday?s Game 2.
Make sure to check out the NHL props page for all our tasty offerings on both conference series. If you had the Flyers to beat Montreal in Game 1 by five goals or more, you got paid out at 30-1. A Chicago sweep over the Sharks out West is worth 11-1 if you bought in before Sunday?s opener.
