Sporting Bets Tips

On Sunday two of the hottest teams in the NHL will square off when the Chicago Blackhawks travel to Washington to face Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals in a nationally televised game on NBC.

The Capitals are at 40-1 in NHL Betting odds whereas the Blackhawks are at 35-1 to repeat as Stanley Cup champions.

For the Central Division race, Chicago has won eight games in a row and has started to put some pressure on the Detroit Red Wings. By winning five straight including a 2-1 shootout victory over Tampa Bay, Washington has been red hot as of late too. Both teams get the desperately needed two points that accompany a victory as they will look to continue their solid play.

During its current eight game winning streaks, Chicago has benefited from a potent offense. The Blackhawks hope their offensive barrage will continue for the rest of the season and into the playoffs, having scored three or more goals during all eight contests.

In order to keep their winning streak alive, the Capitals on the other hand have had to rely on their defense. Washington has not scored more than three goals in a game since February 16th, usually considered one of the better offensive teams in the league. In three of their last four games, actually, the Capitals have won in overtime or a shootout. The Capitals will certainly find themselves among the favorites to win the Stanley Cup this spring if they can keep up this defensive style of play while figuring out how to score more goals like they are used to.

Friday night clash between two of Hockey’s most storied franchises the Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens, as a true hockey fan you will love this battle. Only twice per season it happens, when both of these original six teams square off on the ice it is always a treat to watch. The Detroit Red Wings are favorites in NHL betting odds for this matchup.

With outstanding records both these teams come into the contest, by 1 point both are actually only separated in the standings. Even as maintaining that slim 1 point lead, despite the fact that the Red Wings do have 2 games in hand over Montreal. Although both teams weren’t members of the original six, both teams lead their relevant divisions making this one of the early season marquee match ups.

As the Red Wings will bring the number one offense based on goals scored for each game in opposition to the number two overall defenses in the league based on goals allowed per game, you can expect a good match up of distinct styles. While the Canadiens let a stingy 2.0 goals per game, the Wings are still averaging 3.4 goals per competition.

With a 10-4-2 mark, the Detroit Red Wings who have one of the best home records so far this season, for them this game will be the third of a three game home stand. Coming Friday night, this may be a difficult game for Montreal to win with the offensive firepower of the Red Wings, and typically stellar performances at Joe Louis Arena.

The San Jose Sharks were the leaders of the Pacific Division. Many people picked this team to win it all in 2010, but they were thwarted on their path. They experienced great success in the regular season, taking the top seed in the Western Conference for the Stanley Cup playoffs. They are very popular in various hockey news columns too.

The Sharks could not overcome Chicago in the playoffs and were not able to realize their dreams of being the 2010 champions. The team will have some work to do, but they are once again a solid contender to win it all in the upcoming season.

The Sharks are solid across the board. They have a great offensive attack. They convert well on the power play. They have great power play defense. They are also a solid defensive team. They have the makeup of a team that can go all the way, the key will just be coming through when the time comes.

The Sharks are led by center Joe Thornton. Thornton is one of the great distributors of the puck in all of the game. Last season he dished out 69 assists. He has his counterpart Patrick Marleau to help him in putting the puck in the net. Marleau scored 44 goals on the season and dished out an additional 39 assists. This combo should be difficult to deal with for their opponents.

The Sharks will likely be the favorites to win their division and perhaps even the whole Western Conference in the new season. 2011 could be all about San Jose.