The acquisition of Ryan Miller has convinced online bookmaker Bovada to make the St. Louis Blues its 2014 Stanley Cup favorite. The Blues, a franchise that’s still looking for its first NHL title, is now getting 5/1 odds to win the Cup, down slightly from 6/1 on Feb. 4.
Here’s the full list of odds (Feb.4 odds in brackets):
St. Louis Blues 5/1 (6/1)
Chicago Blackhawks 13/2 (11/2)
Pittsburgh Penguins 13/2 (6/1)
Anaheim Ducks 15/2 (7/1)
Boston Bruins 15/2 (9/1)
San Jose Sharks 10/1 (10/1)
Los Angeles Kings 12/1 (16/1)
Colorado Avalanche 20/1 (20/1)
New York Rangers 20/1 (25/1)
Montreal Canadiens 25/1 (33/1)
Toronto Maple Leafs 25/1 (28/1)
Tampa Bay Lightning 28/1 (20/1)
Minnesota Wild 33/1 (40/1)
Philadelphia Flyers 33/1 (25/1)
Detroit Red Wings 40/1 (33/1)
Washington Capitals 40/1 (40/1)
Columbus Blue Jackets 50/1 (40/1)
Dallas Stars 50/1 (75/1)
Vancouver Canucks 50/1 (28/1)
New Jersey Devils 66/1 (50/1)
Ottawa Senators 66/1 (50/1)
Phoenix Coyotes 66/1 (66/1)
Winnipeg Jets 66/1 (200/1)
Carolina Hurricanes 100/1 (50/1)
Florida Panthers Off (300/1)
Nashville Predators Off (200/1)
New York Islanders Off (200/1)
The Oilers, Flames, and Sabres were all off the board on Feb. 4, and remain so.
Notes:
--- Tampa Bay saw its odds go up from 20/1 to 28/1, as Martin St. Louis was traded to the Rangers, whose odds fell from 25/1 to 20/1.
--- Not surprisingly, Vancouver’s odds made a significant move in the wrong direction, going from 28/1 to 50/1. Carolina’s move was the biggest in that direction, from 50/1 to 100/1, but that was more a long shot turning into a really long shot.
--- The biggest mover in the right direction? That would be Winnipeg, going from 200/1 to 66/1. Next would be Dallas, going from 75/1 to 50/1. The L.A. Kings, featuring Marian Gaborik now, also saw their number fall a significant percentage, from 16/1 to 12/1.
--- If we had $5 to bet? We’d throw it on Columbus at 50/1. Of all the long shots, you could do worse than the Blue Jackets in a pretty wide open Eastern Conference.