The past season was disappointing by the standards of both NHL teams in Pennsylvania.
Now that the Colorado Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup, sports bettors in Pennsylvania get to look ahead to better luck next season.
Let’s do that, then, and see what lies ahead in NHL betting.
Pennsylvania sports betting apps already have issued future odds for the 2022-23 season.
Let’s see how the state’s teams are faring.
Philadelphia Flyers
As the Flyers and their fans put a forgettable 2021-22 season in the rear-view mirror, they do so with hope for optimism and a retool under a new coach.
In a season with a disheartening 25-46-11 record (61 points) that ended on a two-game losing streak and a 2-5-3 record in its last 10 games, the Flyers’ hierarchy said goodbye to interim head coach Mike Yeo (17-36-7), who took over for Alain Vigneault (8-11-4 start to season; fired 12/6/21).
After a long wait, fans got to see the Flyers hire much-traveled John Tortorella, a former Stanley Cup winner, as head coach. The veteran leader signed a four-year contract on June 17.
Tortorella, 63, most recently coached the Columbus Blue Jackets for six seasons, ending his stint after the 2020-21 season. He finished with a record of 227-166-54, making him the winningest coach in franchise history. He led the Blue Jackets to the playoffs in four of the six seasons.
Tortorella also coached the Tampa Bay Lightning (where he won the 2004 Stanley Cup), the New York Rangers and Vancouver Canucks.
BetMGM Pennsylvania Sportsbook, the Flyers are considered long shots at +3500 to win the Eastern Conference and +6600 to win the Stanley Cup.
DraftKings Pennsylvania Sportsbook has the Flyers at +6000 to win the Cup.
Don’t forget, for the current baseball season, and hockey and football seasons ahead, look at PennStakes.com for the best Pennsylvania sports betting promo codes.
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Penguins (46-25-11, 103 points) finished third in the Metropolitan Division. The record and season weren’t bad at all but fans were disappointed with a first-round exit.
To make matters worse, the Penguins had leads of two games to none and three to one but couldn’t close out the series with the rival New York Rangers.
The Rangers’ Artemi Panarin scored on a power play, 4:46 into overtime, to lift the Rangers to a thrilling 4-3 Game 7 victory to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals on May 15.
Pittsburgh is knocking on the door, but changes could be coming in free agency as two of the team’s mainstays – center Evgeni Malkin and defenseman Kris Letang – are unrestricted free agents. These two, along with captain Sidney Crosby, have been the core to lead the team to three Stanley Cup titles (2009, 2016, 2017).
Bookmakers also see the Penguins contending once again as BetMGM’s future odds are considerably favorable. The Pens are listed at +1000 to take the Eastern Conference and +2000 to capture the Stanley Cup.
The Penguins are tied for 10th overall with the Rangers at the same +2000 on DraftKings.
The off-season should be interesting for both Pennsylvania teams as the NHL Draft is only six days away.
Coming Up: NHL Draft
The NHL Draft will take place on July 7-8 at Bell Centre in Montreal.
The Flyers will have six selections, highlighted by the No 5 overall pick in the first round, over the seven-round, 225-play draft. The other selections: No. 69 (Round 3), No. 101 (R4), No. 133 (R5), No. 165 (R6) and No. 197 (R7).
The Penguins have five selections, including the No. 21 pick in the first round. The other selections: No. 118 (R4), No. 150 (R5), No. 182 (R6) and No. 214 (R7).
