@ Christmas Break

[LeRinkRat]

season just at 40% done and some things are very apparent so far

the Dallas Stars and the Washington Capitals are the class of the league both being 8 & 9 points ahead of their nearest Conference rivals the St Louis Blues and Montreal Canadiens.

other "plus surprise" teams. Florida Panthers and Boston Bruins tied for 2nd Atlantic Division AND Detroit Red Wings one point back @ 3rd. they were all three relatively high odds pre-season as were the NJ Devils and Philly Flyers who are "in range" of their Metro Division playoff spots. they were also high odds pre-season

"nasty surprise" of the season so far the Anaheim Ducks dead last in BOTH their Conference AND Pacific Divison. this team was one of the Conference and Cup favs pre-season

also underperforming the Tampa Bay Lightning in the lower half of their Conference and the Atlantic Division. this was a team that went to the Stanley Cup Finals last season. other under performing pre-seaaon "low odds" fav the Pittsburgh Penguins below both the Devils and Flyers in the Metro

looking at divisions the Central obviously the strongest. the top 3 teams are above any Pacific team and the #4 Wild are tied with the Pacific leading Kings with 42 point while the Predators are just 2 points behind @ 40. the 2nd and 3rd spots are wide open in Pacific with all 5 teams within 6 points of each other. even the under achieving Ducks have a playoff shot IF they can get it together

in the East BOTH the Canadiens and Rangers have been on a slide with the Habs losing their last 5 and 1-9 their last 10 while the Rangers are 2-6-1 their last 10. the Panthers have made a recent move going 7-3 and have been excellent in OT/SO's which is a major difference from last season. unless the Canadiens "right the ship" any one of 6 teams, even the Lightning, can win the Atlantic Division much like in the Pacific.

it is probably doubtful that the four "botton feeders" in the East, the Sabres, Maple Leaf, Hurricanes or Bluejackets can make the playoff along with the Avalanche and Jets by being in the Central Division although Colorado HAS won 7 of their last 10 so anything is possible IF those above then falter OR they were to "squeek" into a wild card

OPINION WELCOME :smile-new:

 

[Lareux]

Good stuff LRR. I think the theme of the NHL thus far is the disappointing teams that you've pointed out. Anaheim, Tampa Bay, and Pittsburgh are leading the pack in that category.

Montreal's struggles seem to be easy to figure out...Carey Price is injured. When he comes back, I'd expect them to right the ship and be a force to reckon with come playoff time. They are 2-7-1 since Price has been out of the lineup.

You're probably right about the Sabres not really having a chance to make the playoffs this year, but it wasn't really expected around these parts before the season began. Even a huge turn around of 30 points (which may have broken a record for turn around in one year) for them would see them with 84 points, which won't make the playoffs in most years. Fans around here are very optimistic for the near future though, as well they should be. The Sabres have an incredibly talented young nucleus of players, and will only get better as they play together for more than a season. Expectations would be to make the playoffs next year, and be competing for the Cup in the next 2-3 years.

It's definitely exciting to watch that team play, and it's great to see their chemistry get better as the season goes on. With Eichel and Reinhart (both #2 overall picks in the past 2 drafts), as well as O'Reilly, Kane, and Ristolainen and Pysyk the Sabres should be set for years to come. Throw in the fact that the owner is willing to spend the money, it's almost a certainty they will make a splash at either the trade deadline, or more likely in the offseason. Rasmus Ristolainen is going to be a superstar in this league...he gets better seemingly every game, and is just now showing flashes of what type of player he can be. There are many other young players who deserve some accolades, but the ones I mentioned will be the core of this team for the next 5+ years.

 

[gsro]

-Montreal's team runs through Carey Price both offense and defense
-Stamkos being affected by contract talks/rumors

 

[LeRinkRat]

agree with you assessment of the Sabres future, Lareux. good crew of young players to build on and don't forget they have one of the BEST offensive minded coaches in the NHL in Danny Bylsma. Pittsburgh managment over-reacting to that 2014 playoff loss to the Rangers, which was really "robbed by a masked man" by Lundqvist, and firing GM Ray Shero, Bylsma and #1 assistant Tony Granato was REALLY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txG_QEoNwSA

you and gsro are probably BOTH correct about the Habs and Price BUT they can't score for beans lately either. even in their two recent wins they only bagged 3 and 2 goals for. they have been LOSING the one goal games they had been WINNING early season

 

[Lareux]

agree with you assessment of the Sabres future, Lareux. good crew of young players to build on and don't forget they have one of the BEST offensive minded coaches in the NHL in Danny Bylsma. Pittsburgh managment over-reacting to that 2014 playoff loss to the Rangers, which was really "robbed by a masked man" by Lundqvist, and firing GM Ray Shero, Bylsma and #1 assistant Tony Granato was REALLY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txG_QEoNwSA

you and gsro are probably BOTH correct about the Habs and Price BUT they can't score for beans lately either. even in their two recent wins they only bagged 3 and 2 goals for. they have been LOSING the one goal games they had been WINNING early season

Agreed about Bylsma. He's great with the media as well, always speaks his mind and isn't afraid of speaking the truth. He fits hand in hand with GM Tim Murray in that regard, and it's quite refreshing. Tim Murray is a really, really good GM...and he's just getting started.

 

[B.A.R.]

Good thread, thanks for sharing the thoughts.

 

[LeRinkRat]

William-Hill & Cantor Gaming [cg] Futures @ Christmas Break // pre-season @ William-Hill

Eastern Conference

Capitals 3-1 / 5-2 [cg] // 17-2
Rangers 5-1 / 7-2 [cg] // 9-2
Canadiens 5-1 / 7-2 [cg] // 6-1
Lightning 6-1 / 7-1 [cg] // 7-2
Bruins 8-1 // 9-1
Islanders 8-1 / 7-1 [cg] // 9-1
Red Wings 8-1 // 10-1
Penguins 11-1 / 9-1 [cg] // 6-1
Senators 12-1 // 20-2
Panthers 15-1/ 22-1 [cg] // 30-1
Devils 30-1 //35-1
Flyers 35-1 // 25-1
Bluejackets 50-1 // 9-1
Sabres 75-1 // 100-1
Maple Leafs 100-1 // 50-1
Hurricanes 125-1 // 75-1

Western Conference

Kings 3-1 / 4-1 [cg] // 5-1
Stars 3-1 / 9-2 [cg] // 30-1
Blackhawks 11-2 / 5-2 [cg] // 3-1
Blues 6-1 / 6-1 // 15-2
Wild 6-1/ 6-1 // 6-1
Sharks 15-2 // 30-1
Ducks 17-2 / 5-1 [cg] // 4-1
Predators 10-1 // 15-2
Flames 25-1 // 15-1
Canucks 30-1 // 30-1
Jets 35-1 // 15-1
Oilers 35-1 // 30-1
Coyotes 35-1 // 100-1
Avalanche 40-1 // 30-1

Stanley Cup

Stars 6-1 / 7-1 [cg] // 60-1
Kings 6-1 / 6-1 [cg] //10-1
Capitals 13-2 / 6-1 [cg] // 20-1
Canadiens 10-1 // 18-1
Blackhawks 11-1 / 8-1 [cg] // 11-2
Rangers 12-1 / 9-1 [cg] // 10-1
Blues 12-1 //15-1
Wild 12-1 // 12-1
Sharks 15-1 // 30-1
Ducks 18-1 / 10-1 [cg] // 15-2
Bruins 18-1 // 20-1
Islanders 18-1 // 25-1
Red Wings 18-1 // 25-1
Lightning 15-1 // 7-1
Predators 201 // 15-1
Penguins 30-1 // 15-1
Senators 30-1 // 50-1
Panthers 40-1 // 75-1
Flames 50-1 // 30-1
Canucks 60-1 // 60-1
Jets 75-1 // 30-1
Flyers 75-1 // 50-1
Oilers 75-1 // 60-1
Coyotes 75-1 // 200-1
Sabres 100-1 // 200-1
Avalanche 100-1 // 60-1
Bluejackets 125-1 // 20-1
Maple Leafs 250-1 // 100-1
Hurricanes 250-1 //150-1

major moves by the conference leading Capitals and Stars along with lesser moves by the Panthers and Coyotes. big increase in Ducks odds for obvious reasons