Kings Lead Devils 2-0 in NHL Finals
Although both the Los Angeles Kings and the New Jersey Devils deserve to be in the 2011-12 Stanley Cup Finals after toughing out a long, hard season, most - but not all - NHL fans would no doubt prefer a less one-sided affair.
Even though the Kings went into the Stanley Cup Finals as the NHL betting
favorites, many ice hockey fans expected the Devils to bring out their A-game
and stop the mighty Kings in their tracks. But just the opposite happened, as
the Kings racked up twin 2-1 victories in the first two games of the best-of-7
finals series.
Devils Went Down Twice at Home
What's more, both of those games were played in New Jersey, where even the Devils' frenzied and dare I say raucous home crowd could not prevent them from going two games down in the final, and most important NHL series of the season.
So the obvious question fans of the East Coast team will be asking themselves is if the Devils are mentally strong enough to shake off their two home defeats, and travel to the West Coast to give the Kings a taste of their own medicine, starting with Game 3 tonight?
According to NHL Stanley Cup odds, the answer is a short, sharp "no". As
expected, the Los Angeles Kings have been posted as the -1.5 point favorites at
most online betting sites, including Canadian-friendly Bet365. Here are the
latest Kings vs Devils odds for Game 3 at this online sportsbook.
Kings vs Devils Odds for NHL Game 3
| Line | Totals | Money Line | |
| A New Jersey Devils | +1.5 5/13 | O 4.5 10/11 | 7/5 |
| H Los Angeles Kings | -1.5 43/20 | U 4.5 10/11 | 5/8 |
And the reason is not hard to see. The Los Angeles King came into the NHL Playoffs like an unstoppable juggernaut, with 10 straight road wins to their name, just two shy of last season's incredible 12-0. It's like the team from LA can already taste their first ever Stanley Cup victory in their 45 year history.
Just two more wins separate the desert city from the highest glory in North American ice hockey, and the way the Kings have played of late, this Stanley Cup is definitely theirs to lose. Plus, a win for the team - who just scraped into the playoffs as the eighth seeds - would help ease decades of derision and fun-poking.
It will not be lost on most seasoned NHL betting fans that in the team's mostly lack-luster history, only a few players - like Wayne Gretzky and Marcel Dionne - have added any sparkle to the team. That is until now, when the Kings decided to play better than any other team - a confidence that has manifested itself in a sterling playoffs effort.
We Predict an LA Kings 4-0 Clean Sweep
For our part, we predict that the Los Angeles Kings will win the 2011-12 Stanley Cup with a 4-0 clean sweep.
