NHL Betting: Top rookies making a difference
NHL Betting: Top rookies making a difference
A few of this year's rookies are already impacting their teams on the ice as well as bettors off the ice, including Columbus Blue Jackets center Derick Brassard and the Los Angeles Kings' young Oscar Moller.
In conjunction with this year’s U.S. elections, there’s a lot of talk about how the North American pro sports scene is essentially socialist – bad teams get the top draft picks, along with whatever revenue sharing benefits each league may have. The NHL is a great place for poor teams to experience rebound seasons, and handicappers get paid like kings for hopping on board the right train.
This year’s overwhelming candidate for top rebound team: the Tampa Bay Lightning. In addition to an expensive free-agent splurge, the Lightning had the No. 1 draft pick this summer, which went to consensus No. 1 prospect Steve Stamkos. The 18-year-old’s contributions (two goals, two assists in 10 games) have been somewhat muted thus far. However, both goals came in a 5-2 win over the red-hot Buffalo Sabres (-163). There are many more goals in Stamkos’ future.
Tampa Bay supporters certainly hope so, because they still aren’t making any money off this team at 4-6 ATS (-3.42 units). The same is true for the Columbus Blue Jackets (6-6 ATS, -2.26 units), who have arguably the top rookie at the moment in Derick Brassard (four goals and seven assists in 11 games). His contributions have gone largely to waste since the injury to No. 1 goaltender Pascal Leclaire (.919 save percentage last year); Columbus is 1-3-2 with Fredrik Norrena (.872 SV%) between the pipes. Watch out for the Jackets when Leclaire returns – he’s currently day-to-day with an ankle injury.
Blake Wheeler is part of a much brighter present scenario in Boston. Although the rookie winger hasn’t filled the stat sheet as prominently as Brassard (three goals, two assists and plus-3 in 12 games), Wheeler has helped push the young Bruins to a 9-3 ATS record and 7.05 units in profit, behind only Chicago in the NHL money standings.
The Los Angeles Kings (8-2 ATS, 5.59 units) are on a moneymaking tear of their own, thanks in part to the exploits of center Oscar Moller (four goals, two assists in 10 games). The Kings may be 3-6-1, but four of those losses were by a single goal. Moller will be there when this franchise gets back into the top half of the Western Conference.
Then there’s life as a rookie on an elite team. Winger Fabian Brunnstrom (five goals, one assist in 10 games) burst onto the NHL scene with a hat trick in his debut, but Dallas isn’t keeping up, going 4-6-2 to sit last in the league at 4-8 ATS (-8.52 units). There’s only so much an undrafted Swede can do for a loaded club, after all.
Edmonton Oilers at Columbus Blue Jackets
Wednesday, Nov 5, 7:30 p.m. ET, TSN
It’s believed Dwayne Roloson (.929 SV% in four games) will get another start for Edmonton after winning back-to-back games at Carolina and Philadelphia. Whether Roloson is actually an improvement over Mathieu Garon (.895 SV%) is up for debate. Roloson was not very sharp against the Flyers, allowing four goals on 26 shots in a 5-4 victory and grabbing +165 on the moneyline. Over a much larger sample size – the 2007-08 campaign – Garon was the superior netminder with a .913 SV% to Roloson’s .901.
Either man would be an upgrade over Norrena (.896 last year). The Jackets have dropped 3.75 units against the moneyline betting odds in his six starts; the over went 4-1-1, even though Columbus is tied for No. 16 in the NHL at 2.83 goals per game. GM Scott Howson says that Leclaire will not play Wednesday. It’s enough of a disadvantage to make the home team the slight underdog at -102. Edmonton is priced at -108.
Columbus is actually doing a good job on team defense, limiting the opposition to 27.9 shots on goal (No. 10 in the league). The Jackets are also getting some much-needed scoring punch from rookie winger Jakub Voracek (three goals, five assists in 12 games). If the team can stay financially solvent, a future with Voracek, Brassard and Leclaire is a bright future.
A few of this year's rookies are already impacting their teams on the ice as well as bettors off the ice, including Columbus Blue Jackets center Derick Brassard and the Los Angeles Kings' young Oscar Moller.
In conjunction with this year’s U.S. elections, there’s a lot of talk about how the North American pro sports scene is essentially socialist – bad teams get the top draft picks, along with whatever revenue sharing benefits each league may have. The NHL is a great place for poor teams to experience rebound seasons, and handicappers get paid like kings for hopping on board the right train.
This year’s overwhelming candidate for top rebound team: the Tampa Bay Lightning. In addition to an expensive free-agent splurge, the Lightning had the No. 1 draft pick this summer, which went to consensus No. 1 prospect Steve Stamkos. The 18-year-old’s contributions (two goals, two assists in 10 games) have been somewhat muted thus far. However, both goals came in a 5-2 win over the red-hot Buffalo Sabres (-163). There are many more goals in Stamkos’ future.
Tampa Bay supporters certainly hope so, because they still aren’t making any money off this team at 4-6 ATS (-3.42 units). The same is true for the Columbus Blue Jackets (6-6 ATS, -2.26 units), who have arguably the top rookie at the moment in Derick Brassard (four goals and seven assists in 11 games). His contributions have gone largely to waste since the injury to No. 1 goaltender Pascal Leclaire (.919 save percentage last year); Columbus is 1-3-2 with Fredrik Norrena (.872 SV%) between the pipes. Watch out for the Jackets when Leclaire returns – he’s currently day-to-day with an ankle injury.
Blake Wheeler is part of a much brighter present scenario in Boston. Although the rookie winger hasn’t filled the stat sheet as prominently as Brassard (three goals, two assists and plus-3 in 12 games), Wheeler has helped push the young Bruins to a 9-3 ATS record and 7.05 units in profit, behind only Chicago in the NHL money standings.
The Los Angeles Kings (8-2 ATS, 5.59 units) are on a moneymaking tear of their own, thanks in part to the exploits of center Oscar Moller (four goals, two assists in 10 games). The Kings may be 3-6-1, but four of those losses were by a single goal. Moller will be there when this franchise gets back into the top half of the Western Conference.
Then there’s life as a rookie on an elite team. Winger Fabian Brunnstrom (five goals, one assist in 10 games) burst onto the NHL scene with a hat trick in his debut, but Dallas isn’t keeping up, going 4-6-2 to sit last in the league at 4-8 ATS (-8.52 units). There’s only so much an undrafted Swede can do for a loaded club, after all.
Edmonton Oilers at Columbus Blue Jackets
Wednesday, Nov 5, 7:30 p.m. ET, TSN
It’s believed Dwayne Roloson (.929 SV% in four games) will get another start for Edmonton after winning back-to-back games at Carolina and Philadelphia. Whether Roloson is actually an improvement over Mathieu Garon (.895 SV%) is up for debate. Roloson was not very sharp against the Flyers, allowing four goals on 26 shots in a 5-4 victory and grabbing +165 on the moneyline. Over a much larger sample size – the 2007-08 campaign – Garon was the superior netminder with a .913 SV% to Roloson’s .901.
Either man would be an upgrade over Norrena (.896 last year). The Jackets have dropped 3.75 units against the moneyline betting odds in his six starts; the over went 4-1-1, even though Columbus is tied for No. 16 in the NHL at 2.83 goals per game. GM Scott Howson says that Leclaire will not play Wednesday. It’s enough of a disadvantage to make the home team the slight underdog at -102. Edmonton is priced at -108.
Columbus is actually doing a good job on team defense, limiting the opposition to 27.9 shots on goal (No. 10 in the league). The Jackets are also getting some much-needed scoring punch from rookie winger Jakub Voracek (three goals, five assists in 12 games). If the team can stay financially solvent, a future with Voracek, Brassard and Leclaire is a bright future.
