NHL / Richard Douglas / 28 November 2008 / Leave a comment

Richard Douglas breaks down the current happenings in the world of ice hockey, stateside...

It is probably the fastest sport on earth, yet it possesses one of the most gruelling schedules.

It is a game where you can barely see the thing you should be looking at and, bar boxing, remains the only sporting environment where an extended outbreak of fisticuffs will not be broken up too easily.

North American ice hockey barely scratches the surface of the sports media in this country let alone enjoys any real penetration. Television coverage is shunted into the wee small hours on terrestrial stations and is only prime time on specialist satellite sport channels. These are environments that only enthusiasts and insomniacs inhabit.

However, in a one-man mission to bring the game to the Betfair masses, I am going to run you through the basics of the sport and present some teams to watch throughout the campaign.

Of course, a long arduous season means fluctuations. So the incisive, long-haul punter may have the opportunity to lock-in profit on numerous occasions. But before we go there, let's get some basics out of the way.

The NHL consists of 30 teams split into two Conferences - Eastern and Western. Each of these is comprised of three division of five sides. Each outfit will play 82 games in the regular season - six against each of their divisional rivals, four against each of their remaining Conference rivals while another 18 rubbers spread around all the teams in the other Conference.

Sixteen of these sides qualify for the Stanley Cup play-offs - eight from each Conference. Divisional winners automatically go through but the remaining five are decided on their overall record in the Conference. The quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals are all best of seven games. After all that, the two Conference winners do likewise for the Stanley Cup.

It is the mother of all sporting schedules. The current regular season started on October and won't be done until April 12. We'll have to wait until next June to find out the winner of the Stanley Cup.

One nice touch this year is the Winter Classic on New Year's Day when the Chicago Blackhawks take on the Detriot Red Wings, the current Stanley Cup holders, outdoors at Wrigley Field. This, of course, is the home of the Chicago Cubs baseball side. Ice will be laid over the grass and both teams will be wearing vintage uniforms. It will be a wonderful throwback game.

Betfair has match odds daily but, for this introduction, it is best to concentrate on potential winners of each Conference and the Stanley Cup.

One of the surprises of the campaign have been the Boston Bruins ([26.0] to lift the Stanley Cup) who have made their best start to a season for five years in the Eastern Conference.

It is a welcome return to form for a side that has not won the Cup since the "Big Bad Bruins" of 1972 and has not reached a Conference Final for 15 years.

No-nonsense coach Claude Julien came in late last season and squeezed the team into the play-offs. This term, he has instilled a blue-collar ethic in his side. Milan Lucic is the epitome of this with 82 'hits' in 21 games this season. And, crucially, they have the No 1 ranked netminder Tim Thomas. The 34-year-old is said to be motivated by a lack of respect in the game and he has yet again been overlooked for the All-Star game. His prove-you-wrong attitude fits with the persona of the side.

They have rattled up 12 wins in their last 14 games and, during that stretch, broke down a significant psychological barrier by beating Montreal Canadiens for the first time in two years. As a result the Bruins have got their fanbase back on their side after they became rather detached during years of underfinancing, then more seasons overspending on limited players. They should be watched.

That said, Conference rivals the Canadiens are shorter than the Bruins in the Stanley Cup betting at ([11.0]) along with the Pittsburgh Penguins ([7.2]).

Meanwhile, San Jose Sharks ([3.55]) and Detroit Red Wings ([5.3]) are the favourites for the Cup. The former are about as red hot as you can get on an ice rink right now.

A record of 18 wins, three defeat and one overtime loss leaves them top of the Western Conference. They are the clearly the top scorers and have the third tightest defence. Having got their Conference semi-finals last term you can see them going all the way.

Detroit are holders and, of course, that may count down the stretch. That is still some way away of course.

But the longevity of this market makes it well worth watching.