After months of waiting, hockey is back. When it comes to odds on which team will capture the NHL’s Pacific Division banner in 2018-19, the race is open based on oddsmakers.
At BetOnline, the San Jose Sharks are the +240 front-runners, together with all the Vegas Golden Knights (+260), Anaheim Ducks (+550), Los Angeles Kings (+550), Calgary Flames (+550), Edmonton Oilers (+650), Arizona Coyotes (+4500) and Vancouver Canucks (+5000) rounding out the list.
Golden Knights have already become the darlings of Sin City
The Pacific was the most fascinating branch in the NHL per year ago due to the rise of the Golden Knights. During their inaugural season, the growth Golden Knights — Gold Misfits, as they were affectionately known — had unprecedented victory, winning the Pacific using a list of 51-24-7 (109 points) and creating a run all the way into the Stanley Cup final before bowing out to the Washington Capitals.
So, how can the Knights followup their unforgettable first season? After dropping James Neal into Calgary at no agency, GM George McPhee signed veteran center Paul Stastny and traded to ex-Montreal Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty to bolster the top-six forward group. With the rock-solid Marc-Andre Fleury between the pipes, the Knights figure to contend for the Pacific once more and could easily win the division for the second year in a row.
Look out for the Sharks
The Golden Knights were tabbed as the division favorites for the majority of the offseason, but San Jose’s recent acquisition of franchise defenseman Erik Karlsson in the Ottawa Senators has put them in the driver’s seat. San Jose will always have plenty of doubters because of its inability to get over the hump in the postseason, but a good deal of people used to say the same thing about the Capitals as well.
Karlsson, Brent Burns, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Joakim Ryan comprise an incredible top four on the Columbus Blue Jackets line, while the Sharks’ forward collection figures to get a increase in light of the registering of sharpshooting left-winger Evander Kane. San Jose’s core group is still about and its chances of finally winning a Stanley Cup haven’t looked better. They deserve to be the favorites, and also their +240 cost is exceptional value in my eyes.
Best of the rest
The Ducks, Kings, Flames and Oilers will be the only other groups which have a realistic chance of eclipsing that the Golden Knights and Sharks, but Calgary is my pick of this litter to raise some eyebrows in the division this year. The Flames improved much of the roster in the offseason and now have a deep team on paper along with a brand new head coach in Bill Peters.
Calgary’s forward collection is impressive, as Sean Monahan and Johnny Gaudreau are already stars in the league despite their young age. Elias Lindholm, James Neal, Matthew Tkachuk and Mikael Backlund should provide plenty of offense, but the Flames will proceed as far as 36-year-old goaltender Mike Smith may take them. If Smith plays at a level he’s in the past, a shooter at the Flames at +550 odds resembles excellent long-shot worth to me.
For a complete breakdown of Stanley Cup chances, click here. OddsShark’s NHL page has all the betting information you will have to put a little additional cash in your pocket to the ice this season.
Odds to Win the NHL Pacific Division: Sharks, Golden Knights Top the List