March Madness might be over, with UConn winning the 2014 NCAA Tournament, but Spring Madness is about to begin. The NHL playoffs are every bit as unpredictable as the NCAA Tournament is, and in the case of hockey, the Madness goes all the way into June. The NHL playoffs begin on Wednesday night, so let’s set the tone with a look at the Stanley Cup betting odds.
The NHL returns to action tonight after being off since February 9 for the Olympics in Sochi. The regular season runs to April 13 and TheSportsNotebook has been preparing for the stretch run with a series of articles over the past week that have focused in specifically on the top contenders, along with checking on several of the longshots that always have a chance in this sport.
The race for the Stanley Cup has seen four favorites emerge on the betting lines (Chicago, St. Louis, Anaheim & Pittsburgh), along with two solid challengers (Boston & San Jose). The Los Angeles Kings deserve a high level respect as a recent champion (2012) with a top-flight goalie in Jonathan Quick. But the NHL is nothing if not chaotic—the playoffs are a best-of-seven version of March Madness really—so let’s also take a brief look at seven viable Stanley Cup longshots…
The NHL has been off since February 9, as its players compete in Sochi on various Olympic teams around the world. The league will resume play on Tuesday, February 25. TheSportsNotebook is going to be running a series of articles between now and then to get us ready for the final portion of the regular season, leading into the playoffs in April. We’ll start here with a review of the Stanley Cup betting odds…