NHL Over/Under Lines: It’s Betting Time!

Jun 13, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; The Los Angeles Kings pose for a team photo with the Stanley Cup after defeating the New York Rangers in the second overtime period in game five of the 2014 Stanley Cup Final at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

Los Angeles Kings

Over/Under: 106 1/2 points

Bet: Under (-115)

Oh now your boy has just gone crazy…taking the under on the defending Cup champs?  Well, yeah.  This is a significant overvalue by Bovada because it knows that the common fan will see the defending champs and grab the over. But not you, you educated fans you.  You know better.

Now, this doesn’t mean I don’t think the Kings will thrive come playoff time (I see another deep playoff run for them), but the Kings have hardly been world-beaters in the regular season recently.  They finished this past year with 100 points which was actually five points better than 2011/12 when they won their first championship.  They were a streaky regular season team last year, rattling off nine wins in ten games before dropping five straight and then another five straight shortly after that.  Of course they ripped off separate streaks of eight and six consecutive wins late in the season.

The lesson with the Kings? When the switch is “on,” they are a damn tough team to beat.  However they flip between “on” and “off” in the regular season and give off the impression that the regular season is just a tune-up for the playoffs (which they are correct about, by the way) and don’t care where they finish in the top eight as long as they’re in the dance.  Plus coming off two Stanley Cup Finals’ victories in three years, with a Conference Finals appearance between the two, the Kings can use the regular season to rest key veterans.  All those games will take a toll on the Kings’ bodies.

No one would be shocked if the Kings were back in the Finals again this year.  But it would be a shock if they finished with more than 106 1/2 regular season points.  This is a great team built for the playoffs.  Don’t lose sight of that.