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Don't sleep on these teams when you size up Cup contenders |
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The Tampa Bay Lightning, Colorado Avalanche and Vegas Golden Knights have been among the Stanley Cup favorites since the start of the season. The betting community hasn’t lost faith in any of those teams, even though the Avalanche are currently in fourth place in the Honda West.
The Toronto Maple Leafs’ odds of winning the Cup have improved from +1100 to +683 since the start of the season. There’s no denying that the Maple Leafs, with the NHL’s second-best record, have played impressively all season.
But every division seems to have a team that might be a better story than the favorites. Here is one team from every division that you shouldn’t sleep on:
Central: Carolina Hurricanes: When it comes to the Central, it’s all about the Lightning. They are the defending champion and this season they have both the No. 1 offensive team (3.63 goals per game) and the No. 1 defensive team (2.08 per game). But you can’t ignore the ‘Canes. This is a fast, relentless and dangerous offensive team. They have only scored three fewer goals than the Lightning. The ‘Canes are in the midst of a six-game winning streak. Everyone marvels at Sebastian Aho (24 points) and Andrei Svechnikov (20 points), but the ‘Canes have a deep collection of scorers. Vince Trocheck leads the team in goals (13) and is tied for the team lead with 24 points. Jordan Staal is having one of his better seasons with 22 points in 23 games. Martin Necas (18 points) is a budding young star. The ‘Canes defensive unit is one of the league’s top three. The only question about this team is whether its goaltending is good enough.
East: New York Islanders: This division has five teams playing at .620 winning percentage or better, and the Islanders are leading at .692. They have won six in a row, and are 8-1-1 in their last 10. They are 11-0-2 at home. The Islanders are still a below average offensive team and yet they lead the division with a +18 goal-differential. Mathew Barzal is a year older, a little more effective. Remember how difficult the Islanders were to play against last post-season? They will be equally challenging to play-against this season. The Islanders have five shutouts in 26 games this season. Their goals-against average of 2.15 ranks second in the NHL this season. With Ilya Sorokin backing up Semyon Varlarmov, the Islanders now have two goalies that can ruin your day.
North: Winnipeg Jets: This team is as entertaining to watch as any team in the NHL. They have scored the same number of goals (93) as the Edmonton Oilers and they don’t lag too far behind the Maple Leafs (3.32 goals per game average compared to 3.44). The Jets, with Connor Hellebuyck in net, have better goaltending than both Toronto and Edmonton. Why shouldn’t they believe they could be the team that emerges out of this strong division. The expectation is that GM Kevin Cheveldayoff will land a quality defenseman for the stretch run, plus a depth forward. Because of the quarantine issues in Canada, it’s mildly surprising he hasn’t acted already. The Jets aren’t receiving much attention. Their Stanley Cup odds are still +2333, but they are playing like a contender. Their 4-3 win against Toronto Wednesday was a reminder they are in the hunt.
West: Minnesota Wild: One player isn’t supposed to make a difference in a team sport like hockey, but Russian rookie Kirill Kaprizov seems to be inspiring the Wild to a much higher performance level. A dynamic winger, Kaprizov leads the Wild in points with 20 in 24 games. Don’t rule out the Wild challenging the Vegas Golden Knights for first place in the West Division. These are not your older brother’s Minnesota Wild. They beat the Golden Knights Wednesday and are 9-3 in their last 12. Rookie goalie Kaapo Kahkonen has won eight games in a row. Jordan Greenway and Joel Eriksson EK are both having breakthrough seasons. The Wild are scoring a half-goal more per game than they are giving up. The Wild are must-see TV. If you like to saddle-up a dark horse for a playoff ride, this is your team.
Blogger •HHOF Writer's column on the NHL • 
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