The online sports betting community is starting to think that the NHL has finally pushed its luck and the weather may not allow the 2011 Winter Classic to take place in Pittsburgh. But the week leading up to the New Year’s Day game is filled with betting on NCAA football bowl games and some very good NHL games as well.
As we preview the NHL scores for this holiday week, let’s also keep in mind how these games affect the NHL standings. Some teams are running out of time to try and make a playoff run before the all-star break in February, while other teams are trying to keep their winning streaks going and put more distance between themselves and the rest of their division.
Wednesday – New York Rangers @ New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils are last in the NHL standings, but they are thinking that they brought head coach Jacques Lemaire back just in time to salvage the season. Things are not looking up for the Devils as they have only won one game out of their last 10 starts and are currently riding a five-game losing streak. The Devils cannot score goals, and not even Ilya Kovalchuk has been able to change that. The Devils are completely disorganized, but they are trying desperately to turn their season around.
The Rangers are much-improved this season and are in the thick of the playoff race for the Eastern Conference. In their last 10 games the Rangers are 6-3-1. It looked shaky in the early going but goaltender Henrik Lundqvist held down the fort until the Rangers offense could arrive. Now that the Rangers are rolling, they want to build some momentum and keep climbing the NHL standings.
Pick: New York Rangers
Wednesday – Detroit Red Wings @ Dallas Stars
It looks like second-year Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard is starting to get the hang of being on a winning team. Howard was giving up some soft goals when the season started, but he is a rock in net now and the Red Wings are tied with the Penguins at the top of the NHL standings. The Red Wings are not all defense. They are also the second-highest scoring team in the league and have a goal differential of +21.
The Dallas Stars appear to be correct when they decided that goaltender Marty Turco was part of the problem the last few years. Now that Kari Lehtonen is the number one goalie in Dallas, the Stars are in first place in the Pacific Division in a fight with the Los Angeles Kings. This will be a great hockey game, but it will more than likely come down to the Red Wings superior defense.
Pick: Detroit Red Wings
Thursday – Montreal Canadiens @ Tampa Bay Lightning
It looked like the Tampa Bay Lightning may be faltering a month ago. They were falling in the standings and their playoff hopes looked bleak. But in their last 10 games the Lightning have won seven and have taken advantage of the Washington Capitals’ slide to tie the Caps for first place in the Southeast Division.
In Montreal, starting goaltender Carey Price is 2-3 in his last five starts and the rumbling has begun. The Canadiens lost first place in the Northeast Division to the Bruins and have only won four of their last 10 games. The Lightning are not going to help the Canadiens’ situation much in this game.
Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning
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