BY: TY B
The 2020 NHL Playoff Bubble brought hockey back with a chaotic start filled with upsets and triumphs. The 2021 NHL season figures to bring just as much excitement with a shortened 56-game schedule that will include a bunch of home-and-home series.
After a different offseason, NHL teams have finally congregated back into their cities and begun training camps. Now that we’re just about a week away, it’s time to think about locking those futures in!
Let’s see where the #FreeMoney is!
Central Division
| Team | Odds |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | +125 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | +350 |
| Dallas Stars | +550 |
| Nashville Predators | +800 |
| Columbus Blue Jacket | +900 |
| Florida Panthers | +1000 |
| Chicago Blackhawks | +2500 |
| Detroit Red Wings | +5000 |
The new Central Division is possibly the most intriguing of any for the 2021 season. It features a unique mix of traditionally Eastern and Western Conference teams including the 2020 Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning and their foe the Dallas Stars.
Each of the three favorites to win the Central Division usually play in three separate divisions. The aforementioned Lightning from the Atlantic, the Carolina Hurricanes from the Metropolitan, and the Stars from the Central. Meaning, in a normal season these teams would meet just a few times, but they will play each other eight times each in 2021.
The top of this division will get to feast on lowly Detroit and the Blackhawks will likely struggle without the services of Jonathan Toews.
Florida and Columbus will play tough most nights, but I see them as nothing more than speed bumps for the Lightning en route to a division title.
Tampa Bay proved that they can win without an All-Star as they were essentially without Steven Stamkos for the entire bubble, so I am not all that worried about the absence of Nikita Kucherov. The Lightning’s ability to deploy and score with all four lines makes them a nightmare matchup for any team. Pair that with a goaltender like Andrei Vasilevskiy and you have one of the best teams in all of the NHL.
Keep an eye on rookie Alex Barre-Boulet who will likely get a chance to make the roster right out of camp. The 23-year-old was named AHL rookie of the year in 2018-19 and followed that up with 56 points in 60 games last year for Syracuse.
East Division
| Team | Odds |
| Boston Bruins | +250 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | +300 |
| Washington Capitals | +400 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | +450 |
| New York Islanders | +1000 |
| New York Rangers | +1000 |
| Buffalo Sabres | +2000 |
| New Jersey Devils | +2500 |
The East Division features a ton of traditional Eastern Conference rivals and will likely be the most highly competitive from top-to-bottom.
Boston are the favorites to win the division, but only slightly over Philadelphia, Washington, and Pittsburgh. The Bruins finished in first place in the Atlantic Division in the shortened 2019-20 season after reaching the century point mark in just 70 games. The Capitals, Flyers, and Penguins finished atop the Metropolitan division with 90, 89, and 86 points respectively. No other division has more than three teams who amassed 85 points or more in 2019-20.
The first thing that comes to mind when betting this division is to avoid the Bruins altogether. Veteran Zdeno Chara elected not to re-sign in Boston after talks with the team seemed to indicate the team might be closer to rebuilding than contending.
From there my eyes gravitate to the 2019 Stanley Cup Champion Washington Capitals. I won’t be putting my money there either as they have the oldest roster by average age. The schedule is not going to be favorable for the Capitals as they’ll face the East Division gauntlet.
I like the Flyers to end the season atop the division. They have a young stud in net plus a core that features a good mix of veterans and some potential stars.
Carter Hart is a Vezina candidate in net. He can single handedly keep the Flyers in games, but That shouldn’t need to happen too often. The Flyers are led by Sean Couturier, Claude Giroux, and Jakub Voracek. Don’t forgot they also have Kevin Hayes, Travis Konecny, James Van Riemsdyk and the #2-pick in the 2017 draft Nolan Patrick.
If you’re not betting the Flyers, a flyer on one of the three New York teams wouldn’t be a bad idea as each team has a ton of young talent who are poised to break out.
North Division
| Team | Odds |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | +115 |
| Edmonton Oilers | +450 |
| Montreal Canadiens | +475 |
| Calgary Flames | +550 |
| Vancouver Canucks | +1000 |
| Winnipeg Jets | +1000 |
| Ottawa Senators | +5000 |
The Leafs are the largest favorite out of any team to win their division and that speaks more to the division than the prowess of Toronto.
At times, Toronto’s offense is unstoppable. They seem like Superman until their Kryptonite defense rears its ugly head. In fact, Toronto finished with only a +11 goal differential last season which would be tied for second in the new North Division with Vancouver.
However, the Winnipeg Jets finished with the most favorable goal differential at +13 in 2019-20 and they’re my pick to win the Great White North Division. Connor Hellebuyck is a Hart Trophy level goaltender and they have a ton of scoring depth. Kyle Connor is becoming a star to pair with Mark Scheifele, Blake Wheeler, and Paul Stastny.
The only trepidation for me is Patrik Laine and his current status. It seems he wants out, so we’ll see what the haul could be or if he’ll remain a Jet.
West Division
| Team | Odds |
| Colorado Avalanche | +165 |
| Vegas Golden Knights | +175 |
| St. Louis Blues | +500 |
| Minnesota Wild | +1300 |
| Anaheim Ducks | +1700 |
| Arizona Coyotes | +1700 |
| San Jose Sharks | +1700 |
| Los Angeles Kings | +2500 |
The West Division truly is a two-dog race between Colorado and Vegas. The two teams have built perennial contending rosters and will do battle for the #1 seed in the West.
Vegas has proven that you don’t need a face of the franchise type player to consistently win. Since the team’s inaugural season, Vegas has done nothing but win and continue to improve their roster.
This offseason, Vegas made the biggest splash by signing Alex Pietrangelo in free agency to pair with Shea Theodore. The move wasn’t cost free as they had to move Paul Stastny and Nate Schmidt to make from for Pietrangelo’s big ticket.
The Golden Knights have a great problem in net as they’ll have to choose between Robin Lehner and Marc Andre-Fleury on any given night. This will be a huge advantage as Vegas will play eight back-to-backs during the modified 2021 season.
For that reason, I’m going with Vegas to win the West Division. The goaltending will give them a big leg up over the competition and Vegas has a ton of depth still at the forward position as youngsters Cody Glass and Peyton Krebs look to make a name for themselves.
Stanley Cup Odds
| Team | Odds |
| Colorado Avalanche | +700 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | +750 |
| Vegas Golden Knights | +1000 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | +1100 |
| Boston Bruins | +1400 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | +1600 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | +1800 |
| Washington Capitals | +1900 |
| St. Louis Blues | +2000 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | +2100 |
| Dallas Stars | +2500 |
| Edmonton Oilers | +2700 |
| Nashville Predators | +2800 |
| New York Rangers | +3000 |
| Montreal Canadiens | +3200 |
| New York Islanders | +3300 |
| Calgary Flames | +3700 |
| Columbus Blue Jackets | +4000 |
| Vancouver Canucks | +4000 |
| Winnipeg Jets | +4000 |
| Florida Panthers | +4000 |
| Minnesota Wild | +5000 |
| Buffalo Sabres | +5000 |
| New Jersey Devils | +5500 |
| San Jose Sharks | +5500 |
| Anaheim Ducks | +6000 |
| Arizona Coyotes | +6000 |
| Chicago Blackhawks | +6500 |
| Los Angeles Kings | +8500 |
| Ottawa Senators | +20000 |
| Detroit Red Wings | +35000 |
The 2020 NHL Playoff Bubble started out with all sorts of upsets and tomfoolery for bettors, but when all was said and done, the best team ended up taking home the Stanley Cup. Will the favorite win again in 2021 or are we in store for one of the craziest seasons in NHL history?
Notice how I didn’t really mention anything about the odds on favorite Colorado Avalanche when picking the West Division….
I think the Avs are poised to make a deep run as long as they avoid the injuries that plagued them the entirety of the 2019-20 season. Goaltender Philipp Grubauer was playing great until going down with injury and backup Pavel Francouz stepped in and posted even better stats. The injuries just amassed themselves in the playoffs and was ultimately too much to overcome when they fell in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals to the Dallas Stars.
If Grubauer and Francouz can be a two-headed monster in net, the Avalanche could really be in a great position to win the Cup. Colorado acquired Brandon Saad and Devon Toews while only really losing Nikita Zadorov this offseason. Those additions to a deadly Colorado offensive attack may make them the scariest team to play in all of hockey.
Nathan MacKinnon was on pace for his first 100-point season, before COVID derailed things. More impressively, MacKinnon was able to do this as Gabriel Landeskog, Mikko Rantaned, and Nazem Kadri all missed significant time. I’d expect his points per 60 rate to rise while playing with a healthy roster.
Besides Colorado, I’d target Philadelphia and Washington as teams with a little more value attached at 16/1 and 19/1 respectively. Both teams stand a good chance of advancing from the East Division.
If you want a long shot, go with a team like Vancouver at 40/1 or Buffalo at 50/1. Both teams have a solid balance of young guys and veterans. If the young guns can step up to develop into bonafide stars, then the sky could be the limit for both teams. Rasmus Dahlin and Quinn Hughes are possibly the two most exciting defensemen in all of hockey to watch and they’re 20 and 21-years-old respectively.
Colorado Avalanche (+700)
The Avalanche are built differently and adding Devon Toews to play with an already powerful Makar is very dangerous. Can’t forget about Mac daddy and Rantanen too.
New York Islanders (+3300)
For the isles, they shocked everyone and made it to the ECF. essentially the same team minus JB55 and Toews, but the holes can be filled. Trotz said earlier, “I’ll be taking that loss in the ECF last year to my grave”. Setting the standards already. I’d expect to see them make a deep run again. Full steam into Belmont baby. LFGI!
-Dewey Crocs
Washington Capitals (+1900)
Veteran team due for a bounce back Ovi hungry for another cup he wins another one this year it’s a wrap dog he’s going to the K and that’s what he wants to do anyway
Backstrom back health Wilson being a fucking garbage can Oshie is silky sick. Carlson developing into a solid player if Samsanov can be at least solid in the crease they are a scary team
-Dommy Hockey
Vegas Golden Knights (+1000)
The Knights have been a solid hockey team since their debut season in 2017, a season where they made it to the Stanley Cup finals and eventually lost to the Washington Capitals four games to one. And the last two years, they’ve wowed fans with a relentless forecheck and well rounded defensive system. This off-season, they acquired defenseman Alex Pietrangelo to bolster their top defensive pairing. Pietrangelo finished fourth in Norris Trophy voting and posted a career-high 16 goals in a NHL shortened 70 game season. They also have a nice one-two punch between the pipes in Robin Lehner and Marc-Andre Fleury. I think they have a shot to turn some heads this season. But the big question surrounding the Knights? Can they keep up with Colorado. We will find out this season.
-Joe Konze Jr.
Colorado Avalanche (+700)
You are probably thinking, nice pick Al.. just take the favorite. But I was on this squad last year from the start at +1125, and I’m going to ride with them again during this shortened NHL season. They didn’t make the splashy move this offseason bringing in Hall or Pietrangelo, instead went the “analytical-savvy” route, bringing in Devon Toews and Brandon Saad via trade. If this team stays healthy, it’s Stanley Cup or BUST.
-Degenerate Al
Hart Trophy Winner
| Player | Odds |
| Connor McDavid | +450 |
| Nathan MacKinnon | +500 |
| Leon Draisaitl | +1000 |
| Auston Matthews | +1000 |
| Artemi Panarin | +1000 |
| Nikita Kucherov | +1100 |
| Elias Pettersson | +1600 |
| Jack Eichel | +1700 |
| Brayden Point | +1700 |
| Mitch Marner | +2000 |
| Alex Ovechkin | +2000 |
| Brad Marchand | +2300 |
| Sidney Crosby | +2500 |
| David Pastrnak | +2500 |
| Jonathan Huberdeau | +2700 |
| Patrick Kane | +2700 |
| Taylor Hall | +3000 |
| Sebastian Aho | +3500 |
| Connor Hellebuyck | +3500 |
| Steven Stamkos | +3500 |
| Mika Zibanejad | +3500 |
| Mathew Barzal | +4000 |
| Mark Stone | +4000 |
| Aleksander Barkov | +4500 |
| Patrice Bergeron | +5000 |
| Mikko Rantanen | +5000 |
| Mark Scheifele | +5000 |
| John Tavares | +5000 |
| Carter Hart | +5500 |
| Blake Wheeler | +6000 |
| Sean Couturier | +6500 |
| Johnny Gaudreau | +6500 |
| John Carlson | +7000 |
| Ryan O’Reilly | +7000 |
| Carey Price | +7000 |
| Teuvo Teravainen | +7000 |
| Logan Couture | +7500 |
| Dougie Hamilton | +7500 |
| Roman Josi | +7500 |
| Dylan Larkin | +7500 |
| Pierre-Luc Dubois | +8000 |
| Alex Pietrangelo | +8000 |
| Claude Giroux | +8500 |
| Victor Hedman | +8500 |
| John Gibson | +10000 |
| Miro Heiskanen | +10000 |
| Quinn Hughes | +10000 |
| Anze Kopitar | +10000 |
| Kris Letang | +10000 |
| Cale Makar | +10000 |
| Jacob Markstrom | +10000 |
| Charlie McAvoy | +10000 |
| Jonathan Toews | +10000 |
| Nicklas Backstrom | +11500 |
| Thomas Chabot | +12500 |
| John Klingberg | +12500 |
| Torey Krug | +12500 |
| Vladimir Tarasenko | +12500 |
| Brent Burns | +15000 |
| Seth Jones | +15000 |
| Erik Karlsson | +15000 |
| Robin Lehner | +15000 |
| Tyler Seguin | +15000 |
| Zach Werenski | +15000 |
| Aaron Ekblad | +17500 |
| Phil Kessel | +17500 |
| Rasmus Dahlin | +20000 |
| Drew Doughty | +20000 |
| Oliver Ekman-Larsson | +25000 |
| P.K. Subban | +25000 |
If the season plays out the way I suspect, then I really like Nathan MacKinnon (5/1) to win the Hart Trophy. MacKinnon put up 93 points in just 70 games with a roster that was beat up all year long.
The addition of Devon Toews will make the power play even more explosive in the Mile High City which will just benefit MacKinnon who was one of the top power play scorers in 2019-20. Would the Avalanche be good without MacKinnon? Probably, but he’s the guy the takes this team from good to elite.
A few other names I’d like to throw out there are Elias Pettersson (16/1), Jack Eichel (17/1), and Connor Hellebuyck (35/1). Pettersson and Eichel have taken huge strides forward with their games since coming into the league and both will be expected to carry the brunt of the load for their teams. If Vancouver or Buffalo put together playoff seasons, it will likely be due to the performance of their franchise center.
I like the value on Hellebuyck as he has the potential to be the best goaltender in hockey right now. The young American has shown he can play well consistently between the pipes, but can he stand on his head in the North Division to help Winnipeg get back to the playoffs? I think he could and that would throw his name into the Hart nominees even as a goalie. 2021 is already off to a wonky start, so a goalie winning the Hart Trophy would be on-brand.
You can follow myself on Twitter at @TyBuffalo and for everything gambling related be sure to follow @DegenerateZone as well!