Category: General

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Odds still favour an NHL season

It’s now Day 72 of the NHL lockout and little progress towards a resolution has been made. Despite a growing concern among hockey fans that the entire NHL season could soon be cancelled, online sportsbook bodog.ca has posted odds favouring a resolution.

While it’s no substitute for betting on a game, those looking for a little NHL-related action can bet on the following question and corresponding odds (as of 3 p.m. ET on November 26):

Will the entire 2012-2013 NHL Season be cancelled because of a lockout?
Yes: +110 (11/10 or 2.10)
No: -150 (2/3 or 1.67)

In order to force a deal through legal stick handling, it increasingly looks like the NHLPA will decertify. In relation to this possibility, oddsmakers at bodog have posted odds on the following question:

Will the NHL Players Union decertify before January 1, 2013?
Yes: -140 (5/7 or 1.71)
No: EVEN (1/1 or 2.00)

Click here to see more odds at bodog

TV coverage of KHL and AHL games

Hockey on TVWith the no sign of the NHL labour dispute ending any time soon, the league cancelled the first two weeks of the regular season on Thursday.

To help fill the hockey void, ESPN announced on Friday that it will broadcast at least seven games of Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) on ESPN3 in the US and on ESPN UK.

Coverage begins Tuesday, October 9 at 1 p.m. ET when Lev Praha faces off with Dynamo Moscow. That game will air live on ESPN2 as well as ESPN3. (Keep in mind, KHL games can also be watched on bet365.com)

Confirmed games through the end of the month feature an all-star lineup of hockey players, including Alex Ovechkin (Dynamo Moscow), Ilya Kovalchuk (SKA), Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar (Metallurg Mg).

Meanwhile, Canadians looking for their Saturday hockey fix this October can tune-in to Rogers Sportsnet, which will be providing coverage of select games from the American Hockey League (AHL).

The first game will air on Saturday, Oct. 13 at 5 p.m. ET on Sportsnet ONE when the defending Western Conference champion Toronto Marlies (Toronto Maple Leafs affiliate) open their season at home against the Rochester Americans (Buffalo Sabres).

The following Saturday, Sportsnet will deliver a doubleheader featuring the affiliates of four Canadian NHL teams. In the first game of the twin bill, the Hamilton Bulldogs (Montreal Canadiens) take on the Marlies in Toronto at 7 p.m. ET on Sportsnet ONE.

In the nightcap of the doubleheader at 10 p.m., Sportsnet ONE heads west as the Chicago Wolves (Vancouver Canucks) take on the Heat (Calgary Flames) in Abbotsford, B.C.

Like the KHL, the AHL will feature many NHL regulars.

KHL on ESPN3 (US)
Date Time (ET) Match-Up
Tue, Oct 9 1:00 p.m. Lev vs. Dynamo Moscow **
Sun, Oct 14 9:00 a.m. Dynamo Moscow vs. Amur
Tue, Oct 16 11:30 a.m. Dynamo Moscow vs. Sibir HD
Thu, Oct 18 11:45 a.m. SKA vs. Sibir HD
Mon, Oct 22 12:30 p.m. Dinamo Riga vs. Metallurg Mg
Mon, Oct 29 11:30 a.m. Dynamo Moscow vs. Dinamo Riga HD

** Also airing on ESPN2

Watch and bet KHL games online

KHL logoAlthough NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman may loath to admit it, the world’s top professional hockey league risks losing loyal fans (and bettors) if there is an extended lockout.

The world has changed dramatically since the last lockout in 2004, which resulted in the cancellation of the entire season. Thanks to a rapidly evolving Internet, there are now easily-accessible alternatives to the NHL, which hockey fans and bettors will no doubt discover in the weeks and possible months ahead.

One of the more intriguing alternatives will be the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Russia’s top professional hockey league will be the destination for many of the NHL’s top stars, including Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin (Metallurg), Washington’s Alex Ovechkin (Dynamo Moscow) and New Jersey’s Ilya Kovalchuk (SKA St. Petersburg).

During the last lockout, this would be of little consequence to hockey fans in North America, who would find it next to impossible to watch the games, let alone bet on them. Fast forward eight years and betting websites like bet365 not only take bets on the games, they also stream the games live on their website.

On Wednesday, the website streamed a game between Torpedo Novgorod and HC Neftekhimik Niznekamsk. Nail Yakupov, who was drafted first overall by the Edmonton Oilers at the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, will soon be joining Niznekamsk.

Over the next week, bet365 will be streaming seven KHL games on their website. Below is a listing of the games (NHL players that will be joining these teams in parentheses):

Thursday, Sept. 20

  • Salavat Ulaev UFA vs. Metallurg Magnitogorsk (Sergei Gonchar, OTT, Nikolai Kulemin, TOR, Evgeni Malkin, PIT)
  • Lev Praha (Jiri Hudler, CGY, Jakub Voracek, PHI) vs. Avangard Omsk

Friday, Sept. 21

  • Atlant vs. Dynamo Riga (Kaspars Daugavins, OTT)

Saturday, Sept. 22

  • Sibir Novosibirsk vs. Dynamo Minsk (Niklas Backstrom, MIN)

Sunday, Sept. 24

  • Amur Khabarovsk vs. Vityaz Chekhov
  • CSKA Moscow (Pavel Datsyuk, DET, Alex Ovechkin, WAS) vs. Avangard Omsk

Monday, Sept. 25

  • Torpedo Nizhnyi Novgorod vs. Dinamo Riga (Kaspars Daugavins, OTT)

You must have a bet365 account to watch the games online. To open an account, click here.

Hockey betting during the NHL lockout

Despite the NHL work stoppage, there are still plenty of hockey games available to bet on. Most online sportsbooks, particularly the British-based books, are posting odds on European league games. Some will also be posting odds on Canadian junior hockey games, and perhaps even American Hockey League (AHL) and NCAA games.

bet365.com, for instance, has odds on games in seven different European pro leagues including Russia’s Continental Hockey League (KHL), the Swedish Elite League (SEL) and the Swiss National League A (NLA). Many of the top players from the NHL are expected to join teams in these leagues in the weeks (and possibly months) ahead.

Other British bookmakers taking action on Euro league games include WilliamHill.com and bwin.com. In recent years, bwin has also posted odds on Canadian junior hockey games including games in the OHL, WHL and QMJHL. Betting on these games may be particularly appealing for Canadians who no doubt be seeing a lot more junior hockey on their TV screens this fall.

Watch for North American based online books like Bodog.ca and SportsInteraction.com to also begin taking more action on Euro league games as well as AHL games. The AHL is expected to be another popular destination for NHLers looking for a place to play during the lockout.

Puckline will stay on top of the action and highlight intriguing opportunities to bet on hockey during the ongoing NHL labor dispute.

Three-pick parlay for Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals

The following is the Editor’s three-pick parlay for Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Fri., June 10, 2011.

Bet Pick
Sportsbook.com
SportsInteraction.com
bet365.com
BetOnline.com
Money VAN
Spread BOS
Total OVER
Payoff on $20

Sportsbook.ag, SportsInteraction.com, bet365.com and BetOnline.com are all safe, reliable, licenced sportsbooks that accept Canadian players. Puckline.net highly recommend all four.

To open an account, click here for Sportsbook.ag, click here for SportsInteraction.com, click here for bet365.com or click here for BetOnline.com.

Three-pick parlay for Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals

The following is the Editor’s three-pick parlay for Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Wed., June 8, 2011.

Bet Pick
Sportsbook.com
SportsInteraction.com
bet365.com
BetOnline.com
Money BOS
Spread VAN
Total OVER
Payoff on $20

Sportsbook.ag, SportsInteraction.com, bet365.com and BetOnline.com are all safe, reliable, licenced sportsbooks that accept Canadian players. Puckline.net highly recommend all four.

To open an account, click here for Sportsbook.ag, click here for SportsInteraction.com, click here for bet365.com or click here for BetOnline.com.