posted October 1, 2009 at 18:08 EST in NHL Articles
NHL Betting Preview - The Eastern Conference (Bottom 8)
by Charles Jay
To Win the NHL Eastern Conference 2009-2010
- Montreal Canadiens +1400
- Toronto Maple Leafs +1800
- Ottawa Senators +1600
- Buffalo Sabres +1800
- Florida Panthers +2500
- Tampa Bay Lightning +3000
- Atlanta Thrashers +4000
- New York Islanders +7500
The MONTREAL CANADIENS (+1400 at BetUS) come into this year a completely new team. They said goodbye to eleven regulars from last season, and turned things upside down. Scott Gomez and his big contract came over in a trade from the Rangers, and Brian Gionta (20 goals last year) was signed as a free agent.
The Canadiens also like to think they have improved their backline, acquiring 6'7", 250-pound Hal Gill from Pittsburgh and Paul Mara, who was with the Rangers last year. This team was swept by Boston in the playoffs last year, as goalie Casey Price was burned.
The OTTAWA SENATORS (+1600 at BetUS) went out and got veteran Alex Kovalev, who scored 26 goals for Montreal last year, to boost the offense, but the key figure here is goaltender Pascal Leclaire, who had an .867 save percentage in twelve games with Columbus and is off an ankle injury, but was very impressive in the pre-season.
The BUFFALO SABRES (+1800 at BetUS) need more from Derek Roy and Jason Pominville, who both experienced a drop in production last season. However, there are a lot of potential 20-goal scorers on this team; obviously one of them is 40-goal scorer Thomas Vanek. Rookie defenseman Tyler Myers, a 6'7" physical force who posted a plus-31 in the Western Hockey League last season, gets a chance to make an impact. For the Sabres, it will be critical that Ryan Miller (2.53 GAA, .918 save percentage) can bounce back from his ankle injury.
The TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (+1800 at BetUS) finished 12th in the conference last year. They sought to get tougher, and Colton Orr, who had 193 penalty minutes with the Rangers last year, hopes to stir things up a little. The big acquisition was Phil Kessel, Boston's leading goal scorer (with 36) last season. That's not enough, as Toronto allowed more goals than anyone in the league last season. They hope that goalie Jonas Gustavsson, who had a .932 save percentage in Sweden, can provide some of that answer.
The FLORIDA PANTHERS (+2500 at BetUS) lost Jay Bouwmeester, who got out while the getting was good. The goaltending is actually okay here, and David Booth, who had 31 goals last year, was signed for the long haul. Will there BE a long haul? The team is looking for local government bailouts. Hey, at least you've got room to stretch when the Bank Atlantic Center is half-empty. They literally couldn't give tickets away last season.
The TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (+3000 at BetUS) will have a quartet of big scorers - Martin St. Louis, Vincent Lecavalier, Ryan Malone and Steven Stamkos (108 goals between them) and a lot of people on defense, which now includes free agent signee Mattias Ohlund and rookie Victor Hedman (the #2 overall pick). There's nothing particularly bad about goalie Mike Smith (2.62 GAA) either, and now Antero Nittymaki will provide some backup. This team has a shot to sneak into the back end of the East playoff queue.
The ATLANTA THRASHERS (+4000 at BetUS) made a nice pickup on the backline with Pavel Kubina from Toronto, but really, Ilya Kovalchuk (43 goals last year) is a marquee player, and he is joined by some people with upside, including Bryan Little, who had 31 goals in his first full season. Will Nikolai Antropov (28 goals for the Rangers and Leafs last year) help? Sure, but this team needs a goaltending upgrade.
The NEW YORK ISLANDERS (+7500 at BetUS) had no one who scored twenty goals last season. This year they will start the rebuilding process around top draft choice John Tavares, the OHL's leading scorer last season. By the way, when will Rick DiPietro be ready to play?
