NHL Best Bets: Western Conference Winner (2020-21)
Now that the Tampa Bay Lightning reign supreme and the dust from free agency has settled, we can begin to shift our focus towards the 2020-21 regular season. While start date, division structure, and schedule length have yet to be decided; we have a solid understanding of roster construction for nearly all teams as only a few notable free agents remain on the market. With that, let’s analyze our best bets to win the Western Conference.
Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
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Colorado Avalanche (+325)
While this number is short, it’s impossible to ignore the Avalanche. After being ousted in the second round by Dallas, mostly due to a myriad of injuries, the Avs should bounce back stronger after gaining further playoff experience as a young team.
GM Joe Sakic made a savvy move by acquiring winger Brandon Saad from the Chicago Blackhawks for a half-eaten bag of skittles and a copy of Air Bud on DVD. Saad instantly improves depth and secondary scoring that further strengthens an already powerful lineup.
Nate MacKinnon anchors one of the youngest yet strongest core’s in the league comprised of Andre Burakovsky, Gabriel Landeskog, Mikko Rantanen, and Cale Makar. The goaltending tandem of Pavel Francouz and Philipp Grubauer is more than serviceable, as well.
This team is only going to be better, which should terrify every team in the West. Look for Colorado to make a deep run in the ‘20-’21 playoffs.
Vegas Golden Knights (+350)
Another short number but I would be remiss to not touch on Vegas briefly. This team has one of the deepest forward groups in the NHL and just added one of the best defensemen in the league, Alex Pietrangelo, via free agency. They also arguably have the best goaltending tandem between Robin Lehner and Marc-Andre Fleury.
Every year since their inception into the league they’ve made a deep playoff run – don’t look for that to change anytime soon. They’ll be right back in the mix.
Dallas Stars (+1000)
Just like the playoffs, we yet again find value in the Dallas Stars. This team continually gets disrespected by oddsmakers considering they defeated the two above teams in route to their Stanley Cup birth.
This team plays a defensive game that is contrary to the run-and-gun style deployed by most teams in today’s NHL. However, they possess the offensive firepower to play with anybody as we saw in their series against Colorado. This versatility will again allow them to make a deep playoff run.
Offensively, they’re led by Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin; on defense they have two of the best blueliners in the game with John Klingberg and burgeoning superstar, Miro Heiskanen. Additionally, their goaltending tandem of Ben Bishop and playoff hero, Anton Khudobin, form a top-5 duo.
They didn’t make any splashy moves in free agency due to their solid roster construction – and while offense isn’t the name of their game, it may be prudent for the team to explore signing the likes of Mike Hoffman, who would improve their secondary scoring and power play; which could be the last missing piece to the puzzle.
Edmonton Oilers (+1100)
While it’s easy to pick the Oilers due to the perceived surface value associated with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, it’s their offseason moves that make this play more intriguing.
Edmonton has lacked center depth for years but signed Kyle Turris in free agency. While Turris had a disappointing stint in Nashville, only averaging 0.53 points per game – compared to his 0.67 PPG with the Ottawa Senators, much of that had to do with his fit in the lineup, as he was consistently moved back and forth between wing and center. If Edmonton can provide stability, Turris should thrive in this lineup and anchor a strong third line that this team has been missing since McDavid came to town.
The Oilers also signed the offensively gifted Tyson Barrie to a one-year deal. While Barrie won’t be of any help defensively, this signing is more about his ability to run the power play. Which is all the more important as Oscar Klefbom will miss most of the season after shoulder surgery.
Due to Edmonton’s lack of defensive prowess – ranking 15th in the NHL last season, but 23rd out of 24 teams in the postseason, the team will need to continue capitalizing on the power play, which executed a league-leading 29.4% of the time last season. Making the signing of Barrie paramount.
While the Oilers improved this offseason, I would still like to see them make one more move to improve this lineup. I previously mentioned how Mike Hoffman would help Dallas, but his presence on the left wing of McDavid would make their lineup even deeper – while making their power play downright lethal.
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Jordan Anderson is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Jordan, check out his archive and follow him on Twitter @Jordan_A03.