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NHL News NHL Previews NHL Sportsbooks Posted on 02/13/2008 2:45 PM
By: CappersPicks.com NHL Hockey Handicapping Staff
NHL Futures Report
Odds to win the Stanley Cup favor Detroit and Ottawa, but Anaheim and Pittsburgh are in the mix as well
Feb 09, 2008
With all but a couple of NHL teams past the halfway mark of their seasons, let’s take a look back at what’s happened in the world of hockey and discuss which clubs are generating Stanley Cup betting interest heading into the stretch drive.
The Favorite – Detroit Red Wings
Odds to win the Stanley Cup: 7/2
They’ve only lost eight times in regulation. They’ve scored a league-high 152 goals and allowed a league-low 90. And that’s why the cash keeps rolling in on the Red Wings’ odds to win the Stanley Cup.
Detroit had three players voted to the Western Conference’s NHL All-Star Game starting lineup: Forwards Henrik Zetterberg (26 goals, 28 assists) and Pavel Datsyuk (17 G, 36 A) as well as defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom (+34). Not to mention, defenseman Brian Rafalski (7 G, 29 A) and goalie Chris Osgood (1.68 goals against average, .932 save percentage) will surely join the trio on the All-Star bench.
Even better for its backers is the fact that Detroit is a veteran squad that won’t let success go to its head. “That’s our mantra,” said forward Dan Cleary. “Our belief is we can get better in every area.” The Red Wings also have something to prove after earning the top seed in the West last season and getting bounced by Anaheim in the conference finals.
A lot of pundits will ask whether Detroit is big and strong enough to win in the playoffs – last year, the Ducks were roundly considered the toughest in the NHL while the Red Wings were seen as one of the softest. The doubters might have a point, too. Detroit has just one big d-man: Andreas Lilja at 230 pounds. Add to the equation that Chris Chelios is 45 years old, Lidstrom is 37 and Rafalski is 34 and you can bet postseason opponent forecheckers will punish the aging defensive corps whenever possible. Can it last four rounds?
Second Time’s the Charm? – Ottawa Senators
Odds to win the Stanley Cup: 7/2
The Wayne Gretzky-led Edmonton Oilers won four Stanley Cups in the 1980s. However, they failed miserably the first time they got to the finals in 1983, losing in four straight to the New York Islanders. The next year, they faced the Isles once more. This time, the Oilers were the ones doing the sweeping.
Might the Ottawa Senators be able to learn from their failure to beat the Ducks last year in the finals? They certainly looked good early on, winning 15 of their first 17 games. A short swoon followed, but the Sens have since gotten back on track, going 11-2-1 since Dec. 5.
“All in all, if you told us at the start of the year we’d be leading the conference by whatever it is… going into the second half, we’d take it,” said forward Jason Spezza. “We don’t feel like we’ve peaked as a team. We feel like we’ve got a long way to go, and we’ll peak at the right time.”
The big concern in Canada’s capital is goaltending. Neither Ray Emery nor Martin Gerber are playing lights out – the Sens have surrendered three goals or more in five of their last six games – so it probably didn’t please coach John Paddock when the former decided to duke it out with teammate Brian McGrattan during Monday’s practice. Don’t be surprised if Emery’s gone before the trading deadline.
Racing Back to Defend – Anaheim Ducks
Odds to win the Stanley Cup: 8/1
A few weeks ago, it appeared that the NHL’s Stanley Cup champions might not even make it back to the playoffs to defend their title. On Dec. 16, the Ducks lost 2-1 in a shootout to San Jose and fell to 15-15-5 on the season. That particular game was also notable in that it marked the return of defenseman Scott Niedermayer to the lineup after sitting out the first 34 contests contemplating whether to retire for good or return.
The Ducks have since righted the ship and won seven of 10 to climb back into playoff contention. Anaheim continues to have trouble putting the puck in the net, but they might be getting some help in the form of Teemu Selanne, who scored 48 goals last season and, like Niedermayer before him, has been sitting on the sidelines in retirement limbo.
“So far, I don’t know yet,” Selanne said Monday. “I’m going to skate for a couple of weeks now, start pushing more and more, and then I will feel for sure if I feel good enough.”
Third-String Savior? – Pittsburgh Penguins
Odds to win the Stanley Cup: 14/1
The Pens are on a roll. Winners of their last seven – including a 2-1 shootout victory in the now-famous outdoor Winter Classic in Buffalo – they’re also riding a most unlikely hero.
In fact, third-string back-stopper Ty Conklin (1.88 GAA, .941 SV%) might be the biggest surprise of the NHL season. After starting his career in Edmonton in 2001-02 and then bouncing to Buffalo and Columbus for short, unsuccessful stints, 31-year-old Conklin is 8-0 as a Penguin after being called up from the AHL to replace the injured Marc-Andre Fleury and ineffective Dany Sabourin.
“When you have a goalie that can make the saves, he’s giving you a chance to win, and this is what he’s doing right now,” Penguins coach Michel Therrien said.
The Pens will need solid goaltending if they hope to do anything in the playoffs, because even with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin racking up the points, the club’s scoring falls off significantly after that. Besides those two, only Petr Sykora (13 G) has more than 10 goals.
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