Roy saves but Rizzo scores on the rebound… February 12, 2003

There is a myth when gambling that you can’t make money betting on the NHL, so people tend to shy away from doing so.  Much like anything when gambling if you have the right information then you are able to make informed decisions.  While nothing is a sure thing in gambling, these informed decisions can hopefully have you picking the winner better than 53% of the time.

The article written on January 29^th pointed out that the Ottawa Senators, the Dallas Stars, and the New Jersey Devils were 100-56 ATS.  Since the writing of that article the Senators have gone 2-1 ATS, the Stars are 3-1 ATS, and the Devils are 3-2.  If it weren’t for the layoff over All-Star weekend I am sure those numbers would be even better.

Using the numbers from above, the three teams have posted a record of 8-4 ATS, or good enough for winning 67%.  If you were able to sustain a 67% winning percentage in football or basketball then you could quit your day job.

People will still argue that hockey is too unpredictable.  That the possibility of running into a hot goalie or a team just coming out plane flat will ruin you every time.  Isn’t that part of gambling?  In football wouldn’t it be like an opposing quarterback or running back having a good day, or a team just getting covering the spread on a last second shot?

When betting we look to make informed decisions to help limit the exposure of our investment.  This year the Colorado Avalanche has been a good team that’s struggling.  Only recently have they started to turn it up a notch and recently have been one of the NHL’s hottest teams.  This may give us a chance to make money down the stretch.  The Avalanche has quietly put them selves back in the thick of the playoff race.  On the money line the Avs still don’t look like a good bet.  For the season they are -1315, but in the last 10 games they are 7-1-2.  Look for the Avs numbers to improve as the season wears on.

As the season moves along also keep an eye on what I like to call the steady eddies, teams like Dallas, New Jersey, Detroit and St. Louis.  These are teams that have done it before going down the stretch.  The NHL season becomes a marathon down the stretch and teams that have a good veteran base that have done this before know what it takes to win games on a seemingly meaningless night in February.

Out West in a very packed Western conference, Detroit, Dallas, Colorado, and St. Louis will all be battling for playoff positions.  While there is money to be made, I still don’t know if I am completely sold on Minnesota and Vancouver.  Minnesota is still a team made up of relatively castoffs and castaways, but much like he did in New Jersey; Jacques Lemaire has them playing a very responsible and disciplined game.  If you can get them getting any points, they’re not a team that will be out of it often.  SportingBetUSA makes a point of having the lines up by noontime EST so be sure to keep an eye out for that.

Vancouver has a nice mixture of veterans and young talent.  With the likes of Marcus Naslund and Todd Bertuzzi up front the Canucks will be able to score.  What I like most about Marc Crawford’s team is the balance they have on defense.  Ed Jovanovski, Murray Baron, Mattias Ohlund, and Sami Salo have a good combination of grit, leadership, and ability to move the puck.  Its teams that are able to play defense down the stretch that are the ones that are tough to beat.

Aside from offering trends and statistics to help you with your picks, LasVegasSportsLine also offers you four searchable databases to assist you.  The one that I find to be extremely beneficial when betting the NHL is the database for searching how a team does in back-to-back games.  For instance, the Ottawa Senators are 15-5 in the first game, on the back-end the Senators are only 6-11-3, which definitely creates and opportunity to make some money.

Much like when you bet other sports, don’t bet a game just to take the action.  Only lay it down if you find value in the game.  Knowing where the money is to be made can make the NHL a very profitable bet. 

Nick Rizzo

Questions and comments can be directed to NickR@LasVegasSportsLine.com