It might be time to pony up some money and bet on the Ducks.
The All-Star game is the unofficial mid-way point of the season. As the season resumes, its hard to believe the Ducks are not the betting favorite to win Lord Stanley's cup. Here are the betting Odds:
Bodog Blackhawks 4-1 Ducks 6-1 Bos, NYI, NYR, StL 10-1 Bovado Blackhawks 6-1 Ducks 13-2 Blues 10-1
Sportingbet Blackhawks 7-1 Ducks 15-2 NSH, PIT 9-1
Why wouldn't the top team in the league be the favorite? One Answer, popularity. With any parimutuel, once the betting starts, odds will drop on the entity receiving the most action. Chicago is an original six team with a big following. The Hawks get lots of fans/bettors playing their team.
One other reason why the Ducks look like a good play is the competition. The Blackhawks and Blues are definitely contenders to represent the Western Conference in the finals. They are not however the worst matchup Anaheim has. That honor goes to the Kings, who if the season ended today, would miss the postseason. Seven and a half to one for the top team in the league looks like a good bet to me.
All-Star Why?
Another moment of honesty, there was a time that I loved All-Star games. I don't anymore. The best part is the player introductions, after that it goes downhill. 17-12 is ridiculous. I like offense as much as any other hockey lover, but that score is not representative of the NHL game. When a game has 29 goals scored, the only question should be, how many points did Vladimir Putin get?
The skills competition was anti-climactic as well. It was boring this year. One takeaway was that Ryan Getzlaf proved to the world that he is an elite passer. John Taveras and Anze Kopitar's struggles in the passing section of the relay isn't an indictment of their skills. Rather their performances served to make Getzlaf look amazing.
Ducks at Canucks
Yippee, real hockey is back tonight. Anaheim heads north to take on the Canucks at Rogers Arena in Vancouver. The Ducks are are healthy and as rested as they have been all season. One issue that is always a concern when your team hasn't played in five days and have only had one game in nine days is sharpness. Its more of an issue for goalies than skaters because of rhythm. When a goalie doesn't play, its hard for him to regain his edge.
Looking at a potential lineup for tonight's tilt, maybe its time to sit Devante Smith-Pelly. He hasn't scored a goal since December 1st and since then has only four assists. Additionally over his past half dozen games, he has played 14 or more minutes once and less than 13 minutes four times.
Frederik Andersen (26-6-5, 2.30, .917) returns to the Anaheim goal. He backstops a squad that has won five straight and seven of their last eight. Tonight's lineup should resemble:
Forwards Maroon-Getzlaf-Perry Beleskey-Kesler-Palmieri Cogliano-Rakell-Silfverberg Thompson and two of Bourque/Jackman/DSP
Defensemen Fowler-Lovejoy Lindholm-Beauchemin Stoner-Vatanen
Goalies Andersen Bryzgalov
-Ed