Boston Bruins @ Toronto Maple Leafs

Hockey Odds: Bruins -120

The Boston Bruins will look to continue its dominance of the Maple Leafs when they make the trip to Toronto this Tuesday. Boston has taken three of the first four meetings between these teams, including most recently a 3-2 shootout-win at home on March 4.  The Bruins went on to beat the Islanders the following Saturday, before falling to Pittsburgh the next night leading in to this Northeast Division match up. Perhaps more importantly, Boston center Marc Savard suffered a minor concussion on a dirty blindside hit to the head by the Penguins’ Matt Cooke. The injury is not as serious as originally thought, and Savard may play in this game. Toronto, ranked dead-last in the Eastern conference, split its weekend games with a win over Ottawa and a loss to Philadelphia entering Tuesday night’s game.

How The Bruins Can Win:

The Bruins have struggled offensively for most of the season, as indicated by their league-low 157 goals for. With Savard’s status for the game uncertain, not just if he will play but how well he can perform should he get clearance to, the expectation will be for his teammates to step up. David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron, and Michael Ryder must get on the score sheet in a game that the Bruins should win if they can get a couple of goals according to betting services. Tuukka Rask and Tim Thomas have served as one of the more formidable netminding tandem’s in the league, with Rask second only to Buffalo’s Ryan Miller in goals against average, and Boston will rely on more above-average play in goal should its offense stumble.

How The Maple Leafs Can Win:

Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke executed a fire-sale at the NHL trade deadline, leaving his team the youngest in the league. With a lack of firepower up front, and a lack of experience, Toronto will need a solid performance from its goaltender to win. Head coach Ron Wilson has said he will rotate his goalies game-by-game, and if that is true rookie Jonas Gustavsson will get the start. Gustavsson was outstanding in his last start, a 2-1 shootout win over Ottawa on Saturday, and will need to best at his best again if the last-place Maple Leafs are to steal a win. The top line of Phil Kessel, Tyler Bozak, and Nik Kulemin will be expected to score the Toronto goals.

Who Will Win:

Not in recent memory has an NHL roster been so void of NHL-caliber talent as the Maple Leafs is at this point. Buried at the bottom of the Eastern conference standings, Toronto will be hard-pressed to secure two points in any of its remaining games down the stretch. On paper, Boston outclasses the Leafs in every aspect of the game, and, barring a massive  sports betting meltdown, the Bruins should secure the two points in their pursuit of the eighth and final playoff spot.

Pick: Boston

This Saturday there are two games on the slate in the NHL that are no doubters on who will win. These games if parlayed can bring a keen sports-bettor a nice return on investment.

Dallas Stars (28-23-12, 68 points 11^th in Eastern Conference) @ Pittsburgh Penguins (38-22-4, 80 points 2^nd in Eastern Conference)

Sportsbook: NHL Odds

Spread: Penguins -1.5 (+160), Stars +1.5 (-210)

Total: 6

Money Line: Penguins -300, Stars +215

The Pittsburgh Penguins will get to play with their latest toy gained at the NHL Trade Deadline; Alexei Ponikarovsky. Without their new top-line left winger, the Penguins beat the Rangers in overtime, 5-4 on Thursday. Goalie Marc Andre-Fleury was pulled after allowing four goals on just 12 shots. Pittsburgh had a whopping 55 shots on goal in the game. Pittsburgh, after a slow start this season has really come on and looks to solidify their spot as one of the top seeds in the Eastern Conference.

Dallas is going the other way after being quiet at the trade deadline and only waiving goalie Alex Auld and extending winger Steve Ott for four more years. This team doesn’t do anything exceptionally well and have dropped both games since the Olympic break ended by a combined score of 11-2. They lost to St Louis at home 6-1 on Thursday. Loui Eriksson and Brad Richards have been bright spots for an otherwise run of the mill team that will just miss the cut for the playoffs.

Prediction: With the Stars struggling and the Penguins goaltending a little shaky, although nowhere near as shaky as Turco has been this year, expect to see a lot of goals in this one. Pittsburgh is playing at a new level and Ponikarovsky will just make this already very good team better. Look for Crosby, Malkin and company to roll.

Final: Penguins 7 – Dallas 2. Take the Pens and the Over

New York Rangers (29-27-8, 66 points t-8^th in Eastern Conference) @ Washington Capitals (43-13-8, 94 points 1^st in Eastern Conference)

NHL Odds

Spread: Capitals -1.5 (+190), Rangers (-225)

Total: 6

Money Line: Capitals – 290, Rangers +185

The Rangers were lucky to come away with a point in their loss to Pittsburgh Thursday. The Rangers were outshot by a total of 55-16 including only one shot in the whole third period and overtime. Henrik Lundqvist stood on his head and still gave up five goals, three on deflections including the game-winner.  The Rangers will face another vaunted offense, perhaps a better one on Saturday.

The Capitals bolstered their already solid roster at the deadline by adding D Joe Corvo, F Scott Walker and C Eric Belanger and reacquired D Milan Jurcina. Walker scored two goals in his first game with the Caps and C Eric Belanger was added for his speed, face-off skill and ability on the penalty kill .Corvo is an excellent puck moving defenseman and will make for a scary tandem with Mike green at the point, especially on the power play. This team has the best record in the east by far and doesn’t look like they can be stopped by just anyone.

Betting Tips: The Rangers decided not to do anything at the trade deadline except add some tough guys and a backup goalie. The Rangers have been without star winger Marian Gaborik since returning from the Olympic break and may be out for this one as well with a disclosed injury from Olympic play. The Rangers will have to hope Lundqvist can be exceptional again if they want to even have a remote shot at this game.

Final: Washington 5 – Rangers 2, Take the Caps and the over.

Sportsbook Review: Take the Penguins money line and the over and the Capitals money line in a three bet parlay, with the over in the game a decent choice if you want to up it to a four.

Favorite: Colorado / Over-Under: 5.5

The sports betting is focused squarely on the NHL as the league makes its push to the playoffs. There is a lot going on this week with the teams resuming play from the all-star break and the trade deadline approaching. In looking at an NHL game preview it only made sense to discuss gold medal winning Team Canada coach Mike Babcock and his Detroit Red Wings.

There is some speculation that the NHL trade deadline will bring some changes in Detroit and that may be necessary if Hockeytown is to have any chance of re-claiming its status as a “team to beat.”

If you bet hockey then you are well aware of the sad truth the Red Wings are facing, and that truth is that they are old. It is now apparent that Chris Osgood had one more championship season in him, and now he is starting the downhill slope of what should be a Hall of Fame career. Right now the Red Wings are chasing the Calgary Flames for the eighth and final playoff spot, and they are only out of it by one point. Unfortunately for the Red Wings they have to start their playoff push against one of the surprise teams in the West – the Colorado Avalanche.

Last season the Colorado Avalanche were left for dead. They were a shell of the team they used to be, and the playoffs were a distant memory. Enter goaltender Craig Anderson. Anderson was a journeyman at best for years in the NHL, but he has found a home in Colorado. With 31 wins and a .924 save percentage, Anderson is one of the reasons why the Avalanche sit in sixth spot in the Western Conference and poised to make the playoffs this season.

Veteran defenseman Adam Foote, who has been on and off with the Nordiques/Avalanche since 1991, always adds toughness to the team and gives them the leadership they need to win. Leadership is important to the Avalanche because they are essentially a bunch of kids overachieving this season. While that probably sets them up to get clobbered in the playoffs, it also helps them to establish a foundation to work from for many years to come.

Most people still automatically assume that the Red Wings are a lock each season to make the playoffs and challenge for the Stanley Cup, and up until two seasons ago that was the case. But with very few moves being made to shore up an aging team, and musical chairs being played at goalie with no clear successor to Chris Osgood, the Red Wings find themselves on the cusp of a rebuilding year. It appears as though the many years of Stanley Cups and champions in Detroit will have to make way for new names and new faces for a few years. Hockeytown will be hurting while they attempt to re-define themselves, and this game against the Avalanche is a good indication of how far the Red Wings have fallen in a short period of time.

Pick: Colorado 4-1

Olympic hockey betting players are preparing for what should an exciting semifinal day on Friday, with the host country, Canada joined by the United States, Finland and a surprising Slovakia team. The smart money says that Canada and the Americans will go through to stage a rematch of their group-stage clash, won by the USA.

USA vs Finland odds – Friday, February 26, 3:00 PM ET

The Americans pummeled Swiss goalie Jonas Hiller in a 2-0 win in the quarterfinals, and Hiller stood on his head until a pair of third-period markers from Zach Parise. Ryan Miller stopped all 19 shots he faced for the Americans, who are perfect so far in this tournament and are playing the underdog role to a tee. The Finns came away with their own 2-0 win over the Czech Republic, and they also needed goals in the final 20 minutes from Niklas Hagman and Valtterri Filppula. These two know what it’s like to be in the gold-medal game, as the Americans lost to Canada in Salt Lake City in 2002, while the Finns lost to rival Sweden in Torino in 2006. This game should be won between the pipes, as Miller has been standing on his head during this tournament, while Finland’s Miikka Kiprusoff has answered every question asked of him. This will go down to the final period, but the Americans are the play here.

Canada vs Slovakia odds – Friday, February 26, 9:30 PM ET

US sportsbook odds (US sportsbook reviews) had Canada as the pre-tournament favorites, but everyone worried after their loss to the Americans in the final group game, and there was nervousness before Wednesday’s game with Russia. The Canadians put that to bed quickly, jumping out to a 3-0 lead before rolling to a 7-3 romp over the Russians, and they got a huge game from Dan Boyle, who had three points in the first period. Roberto Luongo made 25 stops as the Canadians held a 42-28 edge in shots. The Slovaks knocked off the defending gold medalists from Sweden with a 4-3 win in the quarterfinals, and Jaroslav Halak stopped 26 shots, outplaying Henrik Lundqvist as Slovakia were outshot 29-14. The Canadians will be the heavy favorites in this game, and they need to come out and do what they did against the Russians, which was to get rid of the cute passes and hit everything in sight. The Canadians can play with skill, but their game is power, and they can really wear down the Slovaks, especially on the forecheck. The Slovaks don’t have the depth to skate with Canada, and their only chance is Halak, who needs to have the game of his life if Slovakia are going to pull off one of the biggest hockey betting upsets in history.

Today the quarterfinals take place for the Men’s Ice Hockey. So far the US has knocked off Switzerland and Anaheim Ducks talented goalie Jonas Hiller 2-0 advancing them to the semifinals. The U.S. will take on the winner of the Czech Republic and Finland for a chance for the Gold while tonight’s Canada vs. Russia victor will take on Sweden vs. Slovakia’s winner.

Quarterfinals

Olympic Hockey Odds

Canada vs. Russia

• Spread: Off
• Total: 5.5
• Money Line: Canada -155, Russia +135

Many thought this matchup would have occurred in the medal round but with Team Canada losing to Team USA, and Team Russia losing to Team Slovakia, these two powerhouses have to face in the Quarterfinals with the loser going home with no medal at all. All of the pressure in the world is on Team Canada who was expected to take the gold in their home country. It will be a matchup of familiar foes when Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby take their rivalry to the Olympic Ice for the first time.

Prediction: Canada will have the crowd, and it will be louder in there than perhaps any hockey rink has ever been. Expect Canada to take this game in an instant classic.

Final: Canada 6 – Russia 4. Take Canada and the over.

Czech Republic vs. Finland

• Spread: Off
• Total: 5
• Money Line: Czech Republic (even), Finland -120

The Czech’s have been back to their dominating selves after losing a heartbreaker to Russia 3-1. The Czech Republic, led by former NHL MVP Jaromir Jagr, has beaten Latvia twice and Slovakia handily in pool play. Jagr has two goals so far in the tournament. Florida Panthers goaltender Tomas Vokoun has been strong for the Czech Republic with a .927 save percentage. Defenseman Marek Zidlicky has five assists off of many cannon shots from the point.

Team Finland went 2-1 in pool play beating up on Germany and Belarus, both of whom did not qualify for the quarterfinals. Finland was shut out by Team Sweden 3-0 with Calgary Flames goalie Mikka Kiprusoff in net. The Fins are led by the Mikko Koivu, Sami Salo and Teamu Selanne amongst others.

Bookmaker reviews: Prediction: The Czech Republic has way too much fire power for the offensive minded Finish defensemen. Both Goaltenders are very good so expect a low scoring thriller with the Czech’s coming out on top.

Final: Czech Republic 2 – Finland 1. Take the Czech Republic and the under.

Sweden vs. Slovakia

• Spread: Sweden -1.5
• Total: 5
• Money Line: Off

Team Sweden is the reigning Olympic gold medal winner. Sweden is led by a contingent of the NHL’s best players including: Detroit’s Johan Franzen and Henrik Zetterberg, Vancouver’s Sedin Brothers, Washington center Niklas Backstrom (leads Sweden with 5 points) and Ottawa forward Daniel Alfredsson. What really makes this Sweden team tick however is New York Rangers goalie, Henrik Lundqvist. Lundqvist has two shutouts in his two games played against Finland and Germany. King Henry is one of the best in the business and with the firepower on this squad; any team that falls behind is in deep trouble.

Team Slovakia made its way to the quarterfinals by upsetting Team Russia 2-1, beating up on Latvia 6-0 and squeaking by Norway 4-3. They needed all of those wins because they lost their opening game to the Czech Republic 3-1. Slovakia is led by New York Rangers forward Marian Gaborik who has two goals and an assist so far in the tournament. Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jaroslav Halak has played all four games so far for the Slovakian team and is boasting a .931 save percentage and 1.71 goals against average. He will need to be that good or better in this one.

Prediction: Team Sweden simply has too much depth and skill for the Slovakian team which only barely qualified for the quarterfinals. Sweden has not really been tested yet and shouldn’t be in this one as they should win easily.

Sports Betting Tips; Final: Sweden 5 – Slovakia. Take Sweden and the over.

US sportsbook odds (US sportsbook review) have Canada as the favorite to win the gold medal in men’s hockey on their soil, but the road got a little tougher with a loss on Super Sunday. Here’s a look at who should face the top four in the quarterfinals.

Switzerland vs Belarus odds – Tuesday, February 23, 3:00 PM ET

Belarus should be favored in this contest after finishing the group stages with a win and two losses, earning a win over the Germans to get here. However, they’ll have to watch out for Swiss goalie Jonas Hiller, who helped his team take the Canadians to a shootout, where they lost. We’ve seen in this tournament what a hot goalie can do. (Olympic Hockey Betting Pick: Switzerland)

Canada vs Germany odds – Tuesday, February 23, 7:30 PM ET

The Canadians should be favored in your sportsbook, and they should be all fired up after a loss to the United States on Super Sunday.  The Germans lost all three of their games by a combined score of 12-3, scoring all three in their final game against Belarus. They may just be looking not to get blown out of the building by a Canadian team feeling the heat. Look for Roberto Luongo, who plays for the hometown Vancouver Canucks, to replace Martin Brodeur in goal. (Olympic Hockey Betting Pick: Canada)

Czech Republic vs Latvia odds – Tuesday, February 23, 10:00 PM ET

The Czechs will definitely be favored after losing to Russia in the final group stage match, and they’ve already beaten Latvia 5-2 in this tournament. Many are wondering to see how the Czechs bounce back from their loss against the Russians, punctuated when Jaromir Jagr was drilled with a clean open-ice hit by Alex Ovechkin, which caused a turnover on the way to the game-clinching goal. Even though Jagr doesn’t play in the NHL anymore, he looked good up until the Russia game, and he’ll be crucial to their chances. They may not even need him against Latvia, who were outscored 19-4 in the group stages (Olympic Hockey Betting Pick: Czech Republic)

Slovakia vs Norway odds – Wednesday, February 24, 12:00 AM ET

Slovakia pounded Latvia to reach this point, and they should be the online betting favorites in this contest against the Norwegians, who were outscored 19-5 in the group stages, although they did manage to take the Swiss to overtime. Slovakia should prove to have too much speed for Norway, who are scrappy and even held the Canadians scoreless through the first 20 minutes of their meeting with the home team. They can only defend for so long, and Slovakia will eventually break through if you’re going to bet on hockey. (Olympic Hockey Betting Pick: Slovakia)

The betting tips for this year’s men’s Olympic hockey competition has been interesting. The Olympic hockey odds have Canada as a heavy favorite to win the gold in the Vancouver Olympics, and after blasting Norway 8-0 in their first game it looked like Canada was a sure winner. But hockey betting is about looking at the games one at a time, and then deciding who really has momentum in their favor.

In their second game of the competition Sidney Crosby and company had a squeaker against Switzerland that they won 3-2 and that required a shoot-out. The Canadian team is loaded with talent including future Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur in goal along with guys like sniper Jarome Iginla and defensive stand-out Chris Pronger. A force like this is something to be reckoned with for sure.

But on the American side of the puck there is a lot to look at. In goal is Ryan Miller who is probably the best goaltender the United States has offered since Jim Craig. Team USA has Zach Parise and Ryan Malone for scoring goals, and Chris Drury can take care of rallying the troops. But it is the intangibles of team USA that make them so very dangerous. David Backes has two points in the tournament already and he is only supposed to be there to hit people. When the team decides to attack, they have confidence that they can leave Ryan Miller on his own for a little while and he will hold the fort. This is a different team than the 2006 Torino team that embarrassed their way to an 8^th place finish.

Canada has a team of superstars and hard-hitting hockey players. Few defensemen in the NHL hit harder than Scott Niedermayer, and it is difficult to find any player that works harder than Joe Thornton. The team is filled with talent, and that talent has shown the ability to put the puck in the net. But they seem to be lacking a cohesiveness on defense, and the forwards for Canada do not seem to enjoy back-checking as much as you need to in international competition.

Against the high-flying Swiss, Team USA shut down all of the Swiss scoring machines including team captain defenseman Mark Streit. Canada’s defensive short-comings will become evident when the United States presses the issue on Sunday February 21 in what is a very anticipated Olympic hockey game.

It was hard to gauge team USA before the Olympics started. Like the other teams that are made up primarily of NHL players, team USA did not have a chance for any extended practice before hitting the ice. Team Canada was in the same boat. Almost all of the Team Canada players are NHL superstars and some were playing in the NHL just two nights before their opening game in the Olympics. The questions about the American team centered around past teams that were arrogant, ill-prepared and undisciplined. This American Olympic hockey team does not have that problem. This will be an NHL all-star game with the hitting and intensity that is lacking in the real all-star game. In other words, this game will be everything the NHL needs it to be.

Pick: Team USA 4-2

NHL sportsbook odds (beted reviews) will take a break for a couple of weeks as the Winter Olympics will take center stage. There is still a couple of matchups to keep an eye on this weekend before the NHL sends its best players to Vancouver.

Rangers vs Penguins odds – Friday, February 12, 7:30 PM ET

The Penguins are the NHL betting favorites at -220 as they’ve beaten the Rangers in all four meetings so far this season, and seven in a row overall. The Rangers haven’t been able to stop Sidney Crosby, as the Penguins captain has lit up New York for six goals and five assists in the four games, while Sergei Gonchar has six helpers. All four wins have gone to Marc-Andrew Fleury, who has a 2.25 GAA and a .920 save percentage against the Rangers. His counterpart, Henrik Lundqvist, hasn’t fared well against the Penguins, picking up three losses with a 3.39 GAA and an .889 save percentage, while Marian Gaborik has led the scoring with three goals and two assists. Gaborik may not even play tonight as he suffered a cut on his knee by Lundqvist’s skate in a freak practice accident on Tuesday. Without their leading scorer, the slumping Rangers won’t be able to keep up with a Pittsburgh team that is playing well right now.

Ducks vs Flames odds – Saturday, February 13, 10:00 PM ET

The Flames should be favored in your sportsbook at home, but they’ve already lost a pair of one-goal games in Anaheim this season. The Ducks have been getting good production form their lineup despite an injury to Ryan Getzlaf, although he says he’ll be ready to suit up for Team Canada in the Winter Olympics (Philadelphia’s Jeff Carter will replace Getzlaf if he can’t go). Corey Perry and Bobby Ryan have stepped up, and Jonas Hiller has played very well since the Ducks traded Jean-Sebastien Giguere to Toronto. The Flames were also involved in a big trade with the Maple Leafs, sending Dion Phaneuf to Toronto, but the players they’ve received are still figuring out the system in Calgary. The Flames’ biggest problem is an inability to score, as they’ve notched more than two goals in a game just once in their last six outings, and they’re wasting some very good goaltending by Miikka Kiprusoff, who is doing all he can to keep Calgary in the playoff picture. The Flames are probably the biggest disappointment in the Western Conference, and they’re just looking to get into the break, while the Ducks are hot right now and will be out for a good start to their back-to-back set in Alberta. Make the Ducks your internet betting pick on Saturday.

The Super Bowl is finished, as is the football season. That means that the focus can now shift to the other major sports, such as hockey. This isn’t going to be a very quiet time for the bookmakers (Bookmaker Reviews) even though in many cases, the NFL offseason is a slower time.

This year, we’ll have the events that come along once every four years to generate some attention and some action, such as the Winter Olympics and the World Cup.

For hockey fans, the Olympics is a huge event and it will put a halt to the NHL season so that many of the pro players playing can suit up for their nations.

Leaving the Olympics aside for a minute, let’s take a look at what type of impact this might have on the NHL from a sports handicapping perspective.

Clearly, the best players from the NHL will be going to the Olympics. Just like the World Baseball Classic, while many people are exciting that their favorite stars will be playing for their nation, the reality is that this is going to have a big impact on the regular leagues once they get back into the swing.

For example, the San Jose Sharks are sending their top line of Dany Heatley, Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau to play in the Olympics for Team Canada. Most Sharks fans would rather see their big three have a two week rest rather than play extra hockey.

The ripple effect could be huge as internet sports betting sharps can attest to the fact that the NHL season is already long and the playoffs are quite the grind. That means that now the best players from a number of key teams have to play two extra weeks of hockey and then get back into the swing of things in the NHL.

Don’t count out injuries as some teams might lose their stars in the Olympics, which could have huge ramifications.

But on the flip side, if there is a team in the NHL that is a contender right now, and is not sending many players to the Olympics, they’ll have a prolonged period to rest and remain fresh for the stretch drive.

If you’re betting on hockey, enjoy the Olympics but keep an eye on how the fatigue factor might come into play for those players taking part in the Olympics.

It’s not quite the Super Bowl betting line, but sports wagering players should take a look at the NHL betting matchup between Toronto and New Jersey on Friday night, as the Devils were blanked in Canada on Tuesday, and it looked like the Maple Leafs were sparked by their new additions.

Maple Leafs vs Devils odds – Friday, February 5, 7:00 PM ET

Dion Phaneuf and Jean-Sebastien Giguere, both acquired in a weekend shakeup of the team by general manager Brian Burke, definitely made their presence felt in a 3-0 shutout of the Devils at home, as Giguere made 30 saves and became only the second Toronto goalie to get a shutout in his Maple Leaf debut. Phaneuf laid out Devils star Zach Parise within seven minutes of the first period, and then fought Colin White when he came over to defend Parise. Phaneuf led the team in shots, hits shifts and he was second in ice time, and with the news that Mike Komiserek will be out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury, it looks like Phaneuf is preparing to carry a big load on the expensive Toronto blue line. Phil Kessel, Nikolai Kulemin and Francois Beauchemin all got on the scoresheet for the Maple Leafs.

Yann Denis got the start in place of Martin Brodeur and stopped 23 of 26 shots for the Devils, who has scored more than two goals just twice in their last 10 games. The Devils have never been known as an offensive juggernaut with their tight defensive system and Brodeur, a future Hall of Famer at the back, but their 146 goals rank them in the bottom third of the league. Word is that the Devils are interesting in jumping in the Ilya Kovalchuk sweepstakes as the free-scoring winger is being dangled by Atlanta, but it’s hard to imagine him fitting in their rigid system.

You’d be better off going to a super casino and betting it all on red than betting on Maple Leafs on the road, where they’ve dropped nine of their last 10. The Devils will definitely be the favorites in New Jersey, even though they’re only 4-5-1 in their last 10 home games against the Maple Leafs. It’s too much to ask of Phaneuf to turn around the Leafs’ fortunes on the road just yet, and you can almost take to the bank that Brodeur will be starting this game after missing his first start since December 19^th.  New Jersey is 18-9 at home, and they’ll play with more confidence with Brodeur in between the pipes. Meanwhile, we’re still wondering where the goals are going to come from in Toronto.

Bet hockey Pick: New Jersey