NHL Hockey Betting: Value Betting In NHL East Divisional Futures

By BetOnline September 30, 2019

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Hockey season is right around the corner and we’re going to check out the NHL futures betting board looking to find some value. We looked at the Central and Pacific Divisions in a previous post and in this one we’ll cover the Atlantic and Metropolitan:

ATLANTIC DIVISION

Hard to think that Tampa Bay will reprise their 2018-2019 performance and definitely have no interest in betting them at +125. The Boston Bruins might have seen their window close last year. The Florida Panthers should be better under Joel Quinneville but hard to see a divisional title in their future. Best value looks to be the Toronto Maple Leafs who should have better focus with all of their key players signed. Toronto had the #4 scoring offense in hockey last year (3.49 goals per game) although they will need to improve upon their #20 team defense (3.04 goals against per game). A dependable backup for starting goalie Frederik Andersen would help immensely. Andersen’s biggest strength is his consistency. The problem is that the two backups on the roster–Michael Hutchinson and Michal Neuvirth are talented but erratic. Tyson Barrie and former Ottawa Senator Codi Ceci were good pickups–Ceci has spent most of the preseason on the top pairing with Morgan Riley. Toronto had the #8 power play in hockey last year and with Tyson Barrie quarterbacking the man advantage they could improve dramatically.

BET TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS +275 TO WIN ATLANTIC DIVISION

METROPOLITAN DIVISION

With 7 teams priced at single digit odds the Metropolitan Division is wide open. The Washington Capitals are the favorite at +300 and they might have the most upside of any team in the division. The Caps weren’t at their best last year (particularly on defense) but they still amassed 104 points and won the division. There are some suggestions that Braden Holtby is ‘past his prime’ though Washington’s top goaltending prospect Ilya Samsonov has yet to show that he’s ready to take over. The Caps are solid in just about every phase of the game and if Holtby rebounds they could be tough to beat. Then there’s the Carolina Hurricanes with arguably the nastiest defensive corps in the league. Not sold on the Islanders move to Semyon Varlamov in net. Pittsburgh needs to hope that Matt Murray stays consistent as their backups are uninspiring. At this juncture, they’re overvalued at +500. The Devils improved dramatically adding Jack Hughes, Wayne Simmonds and PK Subban. Devils goaltending doesn’t look to be on the elite level. So it looks like the Caps and/or the Hurricanes. If you’re only going to bet one the ‘canes look to be the better value but the Caps are still the team to beat.