The NHL Thread

If Nucks lose in first round all hell will break loose in Vancouver. Think this market could stomach a loss in conference final but thats about as much as they would accept.

omg we are playing so dumb - very fortunate to be tied after 2.

We deserved to lose. We played dumb and Kings dominated us.

Disappointing from Canucks but not overly concerned just yet.  Tonight a single on Rangers to go one up.  Hoping for a great atmosphere and exciting game.  Anyone else playing tonight?

In overtime in St Louis, should be a coin toss but if ever a team deserve to win its the blues.  Hope they do it

Played the Sharks and the Hawks.

So the sharks get the break in 2nd OT.  Think the Blues will be kicking themselves for losing this one.  However, it looks another series that will go all the way.

Huge for Van tonight, can't stay up though as already knackered from last night and on day session tomorrow for grand national, so need some shut eye

Huge game tonight.

Just hope we play our game and don't get sucked into all the physical scrums. Nucks just not built that way.

Good luck tonight nervy Canuck fans 


As stated not contemplating a bet myself until the game 3 round of matches.


Best of luck 

Florida just took such a pounding in that first period.....26 shots FFS, Theodore must have post traumatic stress disorder in the changing room.  Must set the tone for the entire series surely?

Craziest sport in the world

This Pens/Flyers series is a classic already , unreal stuff 

We continue to play dumb. Seen 82 Nuck games this season and really am perplexed at what I'm watching. Completely lost the plot, no game plan and no poise whatsoever. We can't take a simple pass so far. Only player that has shown some skill is Henrik, the rest is just blood and thunder emotion. Maybe Kings better skill is making us look bad? I'm not sure what I'm seeing right now as we just look clueless. We can't even set up a cycle on the PP. I mean not once! We can't get the frikkin puck thru the neutral zone with any speed and it basically looks like Kings have the extra player when we're on the PP. Thats how disjointed we are.

The number of shots we had is very misleading - hardly had any decent chances.

The Kings are pretty good at breaking up the play rg but you'd have thought Nucks would have come to terms with that by now - agree it looked a pretty poor performance and things urgently need to click.

Rangers played the best post-season game I have seen so far, apart from a 10 minute spell spanning 1st break Ottawa hardly had a look in and NY look like they have gears still.  They are the only one of the 3 teams I backed during the season to even make the 16 so could do with the continued strong showings.

Phoenix still not being taken seriously enough imo and I think they will beat Chicago again tonight.  Backed them to win in regulation in game 1

Good luck and enjoy tonights games

6 seconds to go this time FFS, boiling here

If Hawks had been 2 down after those two games it would have been a grave injustice.

Maybe, but I'm the one sat with the dent in the pocket

Don't get me wrong I'd love to see the Hawks out - they have been majorly responsible for Canucks problems right now thru knocking Daniel out for probably the season with a dirty dirty elbow.

On the other hand got to be impressed with how relentless they are. Shaw is gonna get at least 2 for his hit on Smith - maybe more.

If Shaw gets 2 how many is Asham going to get.

That was one of the most vicious periods I have ever seen.  Unbelievable scenes in Phili.

Any thoughts on game in Florida tonight?  Cats have to come out with some spark or this series is surely gone.  Have to say the Sens were great last night.  Skated Rangers into the ground and I now fear for my AP bet.  They also won 3 of 4 during the season so no surprise if NY are now getting a little messed up in the mind

racingguru - are you in Vancouver?

Been here four years now and am also disgusted by the efforts in this playoff series so far. They have not looked this bad all season and clearly need a complete re-think ahead of tonight's game. They have not looked like scoring for more than one five-minute period in the two games so far.

Fingers crossed!

Yes been here since 2003 - ex London.

Agree we have been terrible so far. Out coached IMO and the move to trade Hodgson was a terrible one. You don't trade away that much skill for what amounts to a meathead that plays 5 mins max on 4th line. The playoffs have been called brutally so far IMO an Shanahan has sent the wrong message with the lack of suspensions.

Vancouver got caught in the trap of thinking skill wasn't enough last year and tried to cover all bases with the make up of their team and now just don't know who they are. Lets be fair Vancouver must have won 20+ games this season where they were outplayed so their final position greatly flattered them and without Daniel they look very ordinary and have looked very ordinary since possibly the Wings game in late Feb.

Hope Schneider can some how perk the rest of the team up as he seems to be their lucky mascot.

Just saw Schneider starts tonight - seems an odd choice, he has played well all season behind what you rightly describe as a disjointed bunch.

Game in Phili simply mindblowing

Schneider has an amazing save % on the road this season and the D seems to play better when he's around. Not that Luongo is the reason we are 2 down though by any means.

Agree with all those points made above - can see the logic in starting Schneider just to shake things up a bit, but for once there can be no finger of blame pointed at Luongo for the disappointing shows so far.

racingguru - completely agree about the Hodgson trade. What is odd to me is that Kassian doesn't even seem that meaty a meathead, if that makes sense. He doesn't have much presence, isn't overly aggressive on hits/checks, and seems a bit behind the play all the time.

The biggest surprise for me thus far is the form of Edler, who seemed to be having a fantastic season. So far he has looked a totally different player in these two games, with no idea where his teammates or the opposition are at any one point. Clearly we need a totally different performance this evening.

Just watched the Flyers v Penguins game and that made for exceptional entertainment. They went too far, but I'd like to see the same kind of heart from the Canucks given that they have been so listless to this point.

tomdeane - I have a question for you. Do you bet with the UK bookies? Do you want to earn some extra money for very little. It could help me out too obviously but if so e-mail me: sbbudd@hotmail.com

Best of luck Nucks fans tonight - maybe being away from the expectant crowd will help.  Quietly fancy there is milage in this series yet

Better first period by Nucks but no goals to show. Playing a bit smarter today - hope it yields a win.

We played a good game - probably the better team on the night but if you can't score you can't win.

Question to hockey fans - do you follow the playoffs once your team is out? I just can't do it.

Couldn't watch as got busy at work....obviously you can't take too much from the highlights but it looks as though chances were at a premium.  I guess I saw the best of the action in Phili and what I caught in Florida.

Not sure about your Q racinguru as I don't really follow a team - though admit to having a soft spot for The Islanders....who never make the playoffs seemingly.  Haven't had a team to follow since Wasps rink became a bowling alley in Durham City.

Henrik got ringed up pretty badly. He played on but wouldn't surprise me if he is unavailable for game 4.

Wouldnt change my pre play off punt on the Flyers at this stage....

One things for sure, with the results as they've been so far it's going to be one hell of a grind for every team that wants to lift the Cup. A real war of attrition.

There are a few of us on Kings at big prices posted on the last thread , can't remember who without looking back but they were the buzz team for ante-post interest from many months ago.


Flyers going well for you Somerset in an absolute crazy series so far , lost count of the penalty minutes , fights , goals and just about everything else that's happened.
Wouldn't be writing Pens off just yet though , they'll take each game as it comes and have the personnel to find a way back into the series , that said it's still a mountain.


Good luck   

I really hate how these playoffs are being played with zero respect by the players to their fellow professionals and the way the NHL disciplinary team have failed to hand out punishments that would deter other offences.

However got to think there was some hockey karma that came round tonight with Hossa getting run by a dirty hit from Torres. I hope Hossa is ok but he sure looks like he'll be out indefinitely. Quenville rightly upset about it but where was that concern for other team stars when his own Duncan Keith delibrately elbowed Daniel Sedin?

Where will this end? When someone dies from a head shot, blood clot to the brain?

On a secondary note the 4 on 4 two minutes between Phoenix and Chicago was awesome. Hockey would be a much better game IMO if it were 4 on 4 all the time.

Less than 5 minutes gone in Phili - both of these goalies are totally hopeless!

Think that's been the problem for Pens in this series drew , because of vulnerability between the pipes they've had to make things happen so much earlier than the norm , this isn't a typical Pens play-off hockey strategy and not the way they've won previous Stanley Cups.
If they can squeeze a win tonight though they're mentally strong enough to revert to normal pens hockey and get right back in the series for sure.


Good luck tonight 

Never watched a series like this tbh it's madness 

All that is missing are funny wigs, horns and big red noses - it is totally surreal.

I really should be watching Rangers, or more probably sleeping, but have to stick around to see how many more cars crash in period 2

Flyers difficulty is Laviolette dare not put Bobrovsky in either - he is like a sieve as well.

Both of them are caught in the headlights - a split second too slow and that is like a lifetime.  Neither of them are playing on instinct.  Maybe it only needs a couple of saves and they come good but both Bryz and Fleury look like lost causes for now.

Im not daft enough to think they both won't come good, though Bryz especially has had a very moderate year....and that in a very good team

Calling John Pertwee

Go see the Crow Man, ask for a decent head and an Orange jumper then catch 1st flight to Phili.  No wait, you'd be overqualified to play nets for Flyers

Bryzgalov is hilarious.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjzKJBUOoGc

Can anyone really believe what they are seeing here?

They moved the goal line to 6.5 and each of two for this game with so many goals about , and overs was still dusted in less than a period.
Fully expecting Pens to revert to some sort of sanity in game 4 and wouldn't be surprised to see a relatively low scoring game , that's the problem Flyers have at the moment in that high scoring madness eventually dries up but Pens are playing plan C at the moment with plans A & B in the locker.


Can't wait for Friday   

Least we didn't get swept and passing seemed to be better with Daniel back. Still a mountain to climb but who knows.

Seems like the end of the road for Luongo though and what whether we can trade him or not is questionable.

Far from over guru for sure , they're in the same position as Pens and you can bet one of those series goes to a 7th game.



Good luck 

I caught the last period and Nucks were as good as they have been in the series.  May just have left too much to do, they will need some luck. 

Amazing watching the difference between Lundqvist/Schneiner/Quick cf Bryzgalov.  Like some are playing on ice and one is playing in mud

Maybe just maybe...

Congrats to Kings fans. Better team over the series.

Going to do the late shift tonight, as will at least have some respite before 2nd round.  Fancy Florida in this coin toss.  GL any players

Can Phili not go to the nearest bus shelter and find a better goaltender than Bryzgalov?

You'd think so drew , no excuses now really as we've been banging on about the Flyer problems between the pipes for 3 years now , have actually got my first play-off bet coming up by backing Pred's to beat Coyotes in game 3 , it's a system bet so whether I fancy it or not is irrelevant.


Hope things are going well   

All the best with that HAYDEN - thought you would be backing Preds - it is a game I'm leaving as I have a position with Coyotes!!  Just wishing I was taking some real gravy as I toyed with taking the tasty price at the start of the playoffs.  Everyone thinking (rightly) that they have ridden their luck but it was a great effort last night (on nights so able to watch ) and they didn't have to rely on Smith to play like Superman for a change. 

I'm fairly convinced that the winner will come from the East this time, just a hunch, the only downside being they may have punched themselves out by then.  Rangers may blow the Caps away (hope so!) but the Phili/NJ series should have legs.  Flyers are playing with at least a one goal handicap each match!

All the best

yes they're all difficult series to call in all honesty , massive prices for Kings so will be crossing fingers but only laying off if they reach the final , still haven't looked back at our old thread but think it was CJ who was also banging on about Kings being a far better prospect this season with the extra 12 months to gel & the key injuries to clear up.


Good luck 

Not original selections but with the goalkeeping of the 4 on display excellent recently and the way all of the teams are likely to set up I have tried both games under 4.5 goals - jus for the interest.  Lets go Rangers for the loot though

You'd think so drew , no excuses now really as we've been banging on about the Flyer problems between the pipes for 3 years now , have actually got my first play-off bet coming up by backing Pred's to beat Coyotes in game 3 , it's a system bet so whether I fancy it or not is irrelevant.

Hayden - anything happened today that makes you want to rethink your strategy for this game

FWIW Preds will be just as effective without their top Russians in my humble....they need battlers now.....

Yes mate i'll probably leave the game alone now , still expect them to find a way to win game 3 but it's one of those situations that if you get involved and they lose you'd kick yourself , the odds are short anyway so system or not i'll be swerving the game.

May get a system bet in game 3 of the Flyers series if they win tonight to go 2-0 up but rather think it'll end up all square after tonight.

No rush for a bet & plenty of time , loved the Kings win last night and hopefully they've got the series by the balls 

Kings blew StL away - looked worryingly good tbh.....I can do without being the only one with a winning ante-post ticket on the thread again this year but then again their aren't so many contributors - shame the Cannucks have gone!

Rangers were worryingly sloppy but I expect Tortorella to give them a gee up....not sure Verizon is the toughest rink to get a result but it looks a closer series than I first thought.

Very tempted to get involved in tonight's game - just find it difficult to get away from goals where The Flyers are concerned as they only have one way to play and a goalkeeper who is bound to have a good game but it just doesn't look like being any time soon!  Brodeur is a legend but also looks like he will cough up a cheap one too regularly.  Not sure he will be between the pipes for every game this series if Phili win one of the games in NJ, birthday or otherwise.  Will only be a small interest in any case - there is a better bet later on in the small interest in footy in Mexico

Nights done after this one so will be back to first periods and highlights for a couple of weeks - good luck and enjoy the hockey

The play offs are ridiculously unpredictable!

Sick of betfair not playing the flat or push totals..I gave been doing most if my NHL title bets elsewhere as so many games are just a five total goals. But betfair have five and half and I don't want that higher total even though bigger price etc..why won't they follow Vegas etc.

All of my hockey bets are with the books roster apart from 60 minute lays.  Not that fond of the 'push' totals personally unless I'm having a multi dabble but do appreciate your frustration.

Oh and while I'm here, GO RANGERS

Anyone watching World Champs?  Czech Rep look a shocking price against Latvia tonight....anyone agree?

Yep, was me banging on about my Kings! Got an ante post voucher at 20s, but went in again at 28s at Lads so sat in a nice position as are a few mates who don't even know about NHL but followed me in blindly!

Looked unlikely to make the play-offs for most of the season so wasn't bringing up my thoughts too often!

Will be a great game between LA and PHX, the winner lifts the cup imho.

Nice one mate , my bookmaker vouchers are each way 1/2 the odds for the cup itself so i'll be backing Coyotes for the series to green the whole deal and then hope for the cherry on top.


Good luck Kings 

Hi Hayden,

How's the NHL been treating you this year? I haven't had any bets at all except for the Leafs/Habs games which have a special place in my hockey calendar. Am betting the IIHF and am making some cash from them. My betting activities have been largely on football and horses since the end of last season and been doing extremely well.

All the best and good luck with your bets fella.

Took Finland and Russia today.

Feel like giving up on NHL betting, it's just so annoying sometimes

No-one fancy the Devils? I thought they've been pretty impressive so far.

Betfair dont even have a market on the game in afew hrs kings and coyotes..thats how little interest there is

Betfair dont even have a market on the game in afew hrs kings and coyotes..thats how little interest there is

I've been away for the weekend but for some reason I had it in my head that the Conference finals started tonight - was there a late scheduling change that led to the games being brought forward a day, which led to BF not pricing the game up?

Anyway - watched highlights and read a few reports which seem to suggest Kings were too much all around for Phoenix, and I fear for NY tonight against a team that seem to be playing like a swarm.  I'm really hoping for the best....Rangers/Kings final might set some banter going

On nights for next 4 so chuffed there is hockey every evening, hope to catch you around

Super series start for Kings last night , not sure home ice will be any advantage in this series tbh and a long way to go yet , ominously for Coyotes though the Kings big guns are firing where as this time last year they were all injured.

If i'm lucky enough to see Kings in the final i'd probably prefer to play NYR in all honesty , potentially would play the extra road game anyway but could see them putting enormous pressure on Rangers expectation at the MSG.


Good luck all   

I am a relative newcomer to this great sport (watching for five years, closely for two) but this seems so clear to me.

The LA Kings are now 9-1 in playoff games this season and (6-0 away from home), and this run of form incorporated series wins against the President's Trophy winners and number one seed Canucks, as well as the number two seed Blues.

Surely they should be massive favourites by now?

I understand acutely that sport is rarely as simple as it appears statistically, but I'd argue there are few knockout competitions with such strong statistics in favour of one of the teams.

Kings are certainly impressive at the moment Tom for sure , if you look at the situation logically and add the market expectation to the mix they won't go odds on for the cup itself though unless they actually nose ahead in the final.
If you examine general bookmaker odds now and convert to a 100% book Kings are around 1.3 for the series and approx 2.6 for the outright , so 1.3 x ?? = 2.6 , suggesting they'll be around 2.0 in the final but if NYR get there that 2.0 will drift slightly and i'd predict those potential final prices as 1.76 v 2.30 in favour of Rangers.
The 3 things the market won't forget are the fact that Kings will have the extra road game in the final if required , Rangers finished the regular season 14 pts ahead of them and that Kings qualified in 8th position , not suggesting it's correct to take that as preference ahead of the more current form lines but that's the way the market behaves.

All the above though can look nonsense and depends on several factors , there's no blow outs and teams qualify in an anticipated fashion , how the key players perform and last but not least the potential injury roster.

As I said yesterday the extra road game for Kings is no disadvantage for me and they can put the home ice under enormous pressure especially if scoring first but that said the market will always factor the extra home ice game into the prices , Kings are only current favs for the outright because of their apparent stronger position in the series having won on the road added to the perception that Coyotes are slightly weaker opposition than Devils.

Cue a Coyotes v Devils final now I guess 


Good luck everyone , especially Kings 

Had a small interest in Phoenix to win by more than 1 goal tonight

Suppose commentators are paid to bull the game up, they are trying to say Phoenix are well in the game on NBC, but seriously it looks as though LA are playing a different sport.  It is going to take something very special to beat this lot.

If anything LA were even better than the scoreline suggests.  Doan was possibly unlucky to get booted out of the game but Hanzal's hit was pretty sickening.  Once the game was gone maybe Coyotes could have come up with some rough stuff but dangerous checks are really below the belt.  Hope LA go on to win the series now, and that Hanzal is put under 'close scrutiny' if allowed to take part in the remaining games

Masterclass from Kings last night & with the Coyotes roster in bits it looks good for the final , one sport you can never take anything for granted though is Ice Hockey.

Healthy roster is still the key for me as to whether Kings can lift the trophy , cast your mind back exactly 12 months following the trade of Penner and we were talking about how he could gel quickly and make Kings a serious threat , then all of a sudden Kopitar was sidelined for the season , Williams was out for over a month and Brown was playing through an injury leaving Penner struggling for opportunities.

Kings need to be careful in this series and make sure they can qualify injury free as it's turning ugly for sure ( with divisional rivalry as well as it being a conference final it's inevitable )if the best possession team in the NHL can score first they'll always look likely winners against any opposition but a Kopitar injury could quite easily be a deciding factor of whether they lift the big prize or not.

Should be a good game tonight & a hard one to call 

New Jersey rightful winners tonight - series is going to come down to which team can outlast the other, setting things up perfectly for LA (look shoo ins now against Phoenix?) in the final.

Tried to post earlier but forum was down I think?

Kings look the most complete side I have seen in ages, either that or Phoenix are playing more poorly than it looks.  Totally awesome tonight, especially spend practically all of the last 5 minutes of the game in Coyote end when they were desperate to equalise.  Incredible performance

@ HAYDEN I read your post on the Kings last night and put a bet on the strength of it, cheers mate, great call!

That's the frustration of playing the best possession team drew I guess , tough to get back into the game if you can't get hold of the puck.

Remember your boys are on early at 6.05pm UK time tomorrow , good luck 

LOL HAYDEN, nothing I can do about the early start, at Donny catching up with a few mates tomorrow evening

Not a bad second best to the hockey I suppose.  I'm thinking of taking what I have tbh.....this LA team look like a monster and something is going to have to go wrong (maybe in net?) for their challenge to be de-railed.  Will be keeping an eye on the game in Albany, it won't be pretty.

Word of warning for the game tonight , we must have mentioned this on the old thread a million times but game 4 in any series is always one to avoid from a betting perspective , archive tells us it's full of psychological , physical & mental imponderables whether it's an eliminator or not , if we did need a reminder of the above the Kings game 4 last night served it.


Give tonight a miss & good luck for game 5   

...well Game 4 of the LA PHX game certainly shows us no matter how much you dominate, it's goals that count in hockey. Was ridiculously one sided but the Kings just could never force it past Smith.

Tonight, it'll happen.

Well some really clear penalty calls went against LA but outside of that first period where PHX were terrific on the forecheck, i thought LA pretty much bossed most of the game and deserved the OT win.

Nothing wrong at all with that winning goal, sour grapes by the PHX fans.

Can Rangers get out of the hole?  I'm doubting it, but has been a pretty odd post season all told.  Cannot get involved in a total coin toss of a game as heaven knows what will happen, but feel obliged to sacrifice the stake of Rangers bet

Stanley Cup winner?

I'm with the Kings!

Me too, in fact i thought they'd be shorter to lift the cup. I'm struggling to see how the Devs can match them, look totally outgunned, but i am very biased.

I'm not trading any of it either, all or nothing!

Kopitar   

Heard some guy on radio from hockey analytics giving LA a big shout so guess I have to respect that as he seemed to more than the average bear.

Anyway no more sleeps ....yeh baby. Go Nucks Go!

The hockey analytics guy must be laughing now - they were 100/1+ when he said it.

Couldn't ask for anything more than 2-0 on the road in a Stanley cup final 

Would like to think it may end in L.A in 2 games time but we all knew there would be road wins in this series due to both teams road strategies so a bit to do yet , some elements fairly predictable in that it's low scoring and there are regulation ties involved with teams hunting the mistake rather than making things happen when scores are tied in the 3rd period , i'd be wary of playing unders though when we eventually hit an eliminator game whenever that may be.

Kings possession game continues to be on another level

Howdi hayden....hows it goin....did you back the kings this season? what price were they when the season started? i recall you speaking highly of this young squad last season.

Harry 

Long time no speak so hope everything is going ok , yes Kings were a long term fancy for myself and CJ , not normally one for bringing up old posts but it was 12 months ago on the old thread so easier to recall than explain....


HAYDEN
26 Apr 11 13:37
As for Kings i've said more than once this season that however far Kings progress this season they will be better equipped in 2012 , given equal luck with injuries e.t.c next season they are a huge player to lift the trophy and any fancy prices available early doors should be taken.

CJ
26 Apr 11 15:49
LA a definite play for me in 2012, will take the odds as soon as the markets up. A young and talented lot for sure.

HAYDEN
16 Jun 11 13:35
Let's see what price the bookmakers go for Kings next season who must surely arrive amongst the big boys next season , it's off to tennis & horse racing for me until it starts all over again but once again thanks for all the input


Took 40/1 e/way a half odds before the season started and although they only peaked at 50 on here somebody went 66/1 a half several weeks into the season so it would have been rude not to have some more , normally do any ante-post with bookmakers tbh as the 1/2 odds is normally better value than backing the win in both the outright & conference markets , also having the big place price means a massive win anyway if they reach the final and only need to hedge the win part if they hit very short odds , which luckily they have so it's job done now anyway.

Hope the tennis has gone well & no doubt speak when the NFL starts up again , will probably start up a new NHL thread again for next season if the interest is there , just needed a break from the time consumption of the forum this season to be truthful.


Good luck mate 

Good morning hayden..yes things are good thanks...same for yourself i hope.....yes i knew i remembered you mentioning this team...WOW what a price you got on them...ffsssss i knew you were an NHL expert missed the boat on this tip...i think if espn had the NHL i would have subscribed and came along for the ride...i only noticed they were in the finals last week..i did take them at 4/6 in a double with rafa at evens...a devils tomorrow would make it interesting...2 OT wins got them off to a flyer...I didnt think they were going to be at the prices you got..who started favs and what price?..congrats CJ also..good shout....have they cruised through to the finals or have they had a few scares?  Yes the tennis has went well...sharapova brining home the bacon..should have exchanged tips

The Devils keep the series alive..not over yet

Yes mate massive game on Monday now , nothing on this now financially with Kings trading so low but would still like to see them win after following progress this far.

Good luck

Of course..1/9 i saw them at the other day so obviously no need for greed at this stage...will be interesting to see who you like for next year once it starts up again.

Congratulations to L.A Kings Stanley cup winners 2012 

Overall that play-off performance was as good as anything you'll see & took the possession game to a new level , Jonathan Quick wins the MVP award and who could argue.

Well done CJ & Harry on your winning bets 


Wonderful end to a great season tonight and as drewboy kept telling us over the last few weeks Kings were playing hockey on a different level.

As is the norm now i'm off to horse racing & Tennis until the new season starts , if there's sufficient interest shown i'll start a new thread for next season.


Have a good summer guys   

WD hayden and cj...superb shout...took 4/6 the kings before the start of the finals..hardly 40/1 lol