Stanley Cup Odds - NHL Hockey Futures
By Loot, NHL Hockey Handicapper, Lootmeister.com
At root, an NHL futures bet is when you wager on something that lies ahead in time--usually months ahead. The most popular form of this type of wager is the Stanley Cup futures bet, where the bettor simply selects a team or teams to win the Stanley Cup. Simple enough. You look at the futures bet section and all NHL teams will be listed with odds. You simply pick which team will win and you can pick more than one team, which a lot of bettors like to do to avoid putting all their eggs in one basket.
This type of betting really has a lot of appeal for a variety of reasons. First of all, it’s a bet that gives you the maximum bang for your buck. You can make these bets at the beginning of the season all the way through the season. In either case, you have a bet that gives you a ton of mileage--giving you a vested stake in the team you bet that can last all season. Every result counts and you are along for the ride the whole way.
You can plunk down as little as $2 and be in the game. It gives you a reason to root for a team. When you look at the scores, there is something on the line and it lasts all season. That’s really worth something in terms of deriving the most action out of a bet. Usually when betting hockey, we bet on one game. It lasts a few hours and then we’re on to the next bet. The futures bet stretches out that action to the very end of the season. In terms of getting the most action out of a single bet, there aren’t many wagers in the world of gambling that provide such long-lasting action. It’s like a time-release bet and you can get in cheap and ride it all the way to the end. That dynamic carries with it a lot of appeal.
It also fits into the predictive abilities of a lot of bettors, whose view of hockey is more in the terms of the “big picture.” Some bettors simply have a better handle of how things will work out in the end and not necessarily how things will go every step along the way. We might think a team has a heck of a chance to win the Stanley Cup. That doesn’t mean we know exactly how that is going to happen. Futures bets allow you to focus less on all the individual steps, but more on the end-game.
Not that betting individual games is wrong. There will be a ton of good spots for that during the long hockey season. But sometimes we have a better idea of the bottom-line, rather than everything that leads up to that. Obviously in a single game, our predictive abilities are cheapened to some extent. A team may not show up mentally-sharp. A key guy can get hurt. A freak occurrence can spoil a bet. But over the course of an entire season, the cream rises to the top. That doesn’t always happen is individual games where anything can and will happen.
When looking at Stanley Cup futures odds, you will see all team listed with corresponding odds. Simply, you pick one or more of those teams. Timing can be an important consideration. When picking favorites, it might not matter that much when you bet the team. But if you hone in on a longshot, why wait until that team becomes good and drives the price down? If you like a team that almost no one is thinking will go to the Finals, it’s better to jump on it quickly. Here are how the odds will work:
Odds to Win the 2014 Stanley Cup
St. Louis Blues: 5/1
Boston Bruins: 11/2
Philadelphia Flyers: 25/1
Above you see an incomplete list of 3 teams and their odds to win the Stanley Cup. The odds in most futures bets are easy to understand. Naturally, at 5/1, the Blues are the favorite where you would receive 5 for every 1 you bet if they manage to win the cup. In very close second are the Bruins at 11/2, which is the same as 5.5-to-1. Also included is more of a longshot in the Flyers at 25/1. A $10 bet on Philly would pay off $250 if they pulled off the improbable.
Again, NHL Stanley Cup futures bets offer a lot of appeal for all hockey bettors. While entertainment-value should not be our guiding light when betting hockey, it’s still a nice perk that goes along with this type of bet. It allows you to capitalize off any longterm vision you may have, especially if picking teams that not many people are forecasting will win the Cup. For those who only bet on individual hockey games, give futures a whirl. They can really add a new dimension to your overall hockey wagering portfolio.
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