posted October 1, 2009 at 18:23 EST in NHL Articles
NHL Betting Preview - The Eastern Conference (Top 7)
by Charles Jay
To Win the NHL Eastern Conference 2009-2010
Pittsburgh Penguins +300
Boston Bruins +450
Washington Capitals +500
Philadelphia Flyers +800
New Jersey Devils +1200
Carolina Hurricanes +1400
New York Rangers +1400
The PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (+300 at BetUS) come back as a team without a heck of a lot of questions but with something of a void on the backline with the departures of Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill. Some shuffling is going to happen in the defense corps.
Superstars Evgeni Malkin (113 points) and Sidney Crosby (103 points) combined for 67 points in the playoffs, and there is punch all over the place, plus some veteran balance with Bill Guerin, who was a nice pickup last season. Big Mike Rupp, who can play center and left wing, was brought aboard, and he will join Eric Goddard to supply the muscle part of the job. As usual, it will be tough to stop this attack.
The BOSTON BRUINS (+450 at BetUS) won the East in the regular season, but were eliminated by Carolina. The Bruins lost only six home games, and that obviously presents a huge edge for them. Will they get the same kind of performance out of Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas (2.10 GAA)?
This team had nice balance, with nine players scoring 17 goals or more, but will Phil Kessel's 36 goals be too hard to compensate for? No matter. Boston is a defensive team, anchored not only by Thomas but by Norris Trophy winner Zdeno Chara, and Tuukka Rask will be on hand to give Thomas an assist, while Derek Morris comes over to upgrade things on the backline.
A key - Marco Sturm must step up after an injury-plagued season and a move from left wing to right to replace Kessel.
The WASHINGTON CAPITALS (+500 at BetUS) saw Sergei Federov and Viktor Koslov pack up and go to the KHL, but as far as newcomers are concerned, Mike Knuble (27 goals at Philly last year) has a chance to explode on a line with Alex Ovechkin (56 goals, 110 points) and Niklas Backstrom (66 assists).
This is a team that is as deep as anybody all around. However, Simeon Varlamov (4-0-1 record last year) has to do something big in goal. If he doesn't, this is like a very good football team without a quarterback (think: Minnesota Vikings, until this season anyway).
The PHILADELPHIA FLYERS (+800 at BetUS) are the team that made the bold off-season move. Owner Ed Snider realized that there was still a big gap between his team and the Penguins, so he endeavored to start closing it, trading two past first-rounders and two future first-rounders to Anaheim to get former Hart Trophy winner Chris Pronger, who immediately makes this defense, and the power play, something to reckon with.
The future is now in Philly, and the present doesn't look too bad. There will be some jostling around up front. Danny Briere, who is looking to improve upon his eleven goals from last season, joins star center Jeff Carter (46 goals last year) and Scott Hartnell (30 goals) in what should be a pretty formidable combo. Rookie Mika Pyorala, who spent many years overseas, will probably find himself between 30-goal scorers Simon Gagne and Mike Richards. A key here is the enigmatic goaltender Ray Emery, who had a 2.12 GAA in the KHL last year and led Ottawa to the Stanley Cup Finals a couple of season ago. This club might offer the most value at the price.
The NEW JERSEY DEVILS (+1200 at BetUS) won the Atlantic Division title with 106 points last season, but then saw coach Brent Sutter go off to Calgary. Jacques Lemaire, who won the Stanley Cup in the Meadowlands in 1995, returns, this time to Newark, and he'll "get defensive" again with this team.
He inherits one of the league's best young players in Zach Parise (45 goals, 94 points), but the Devils have regressed after losing Brian Gionta and John Madden, and have to endure the absence of the injured Patrik Elias (31 goals last year) for a while. Goalie Martin Brodeur (.916 save percentage) is coming off elbow surgery. This is a playoff team, but with no impact beyond that.
The CAROLINA HURRICANES (+1400 at BetUS) finished fast, beating New Jersey and Boston in the playoffs, but lost to eventual champion Pittsburgh. The defense should be just fine, and Aaron Ward is back. Eric Staal (40 goals last year) is going nowhere but up, but Carolina needs more from lines two and three. This team may go as far as goaltender Cam Ward (2.44 GAA, 39 wins) takes them.
The NEW YORK RANGERS (+1400 at BetUS) are placing a lot of stock on a guy with a history of injuries. Marian Gaborik becomes the new guy at the Garden, and if he is healthy he is a major impact player. But Gaborik was limited to just 17 games last season; in his last full year he had 42 goals for Minnesota. The Rangers desperately need his presence - or something - to improve what was the league's second worst power play last season. Henrik Lundqvist (38 wins, 2.43 GAA) is as solid as any goaltender in this conference, and the team is very excited about Hobey Baker winner Matt Gilroy on the backline, but captain Chris Drury could certainly use a bounce-back season.
