Slow Starts to Take Advantage of in 2021 NHL Futures – Will the Penguins Turn a Corner?

• The Pittsburgh Penguins have started slow but currently have an attractive price to win the 2021 Stanley Cup
• The Vancouver Canucks have fallen all the way to +2400 odds to win the North Division
• Read below for three NHL futures bets to take advantage of after a few slow starts

It hasn’t taken long for some NHL clubs to separate themselves from the pack with outstanding starts.

And it hasn’t taken long for some teams to fall behind.

It’s all relative, of course. We could be talking about a Stanley Cup contender that’s off to a “meh” start, or we could be talking about a team that needed to overachieve to make the post-season but hasn’t even played up to that standard as of yet.

What we know for sure is that taking a snapshot of the season right now is not going to be necessarily representative of the way the campaign finishes. Some teams will fall off. Some teams will rev up. COVID, meanwhile, is (not unexpectedly) turning out to be the X-factor in many situations.

Dallas didn’t even get its season started until Jan. 22 but is cruising along just fine now. Teams like Buffalo and New Jersey have run into major virus infection issues that are generating multiple postponements. We don’t really know at this point how these schedule disruptions are going to impact teams.

It’s just too early to reach too many conclusions yet. So here are some teams that have stumbled out of the gate that may yet find their games.

Pittsburgh Penguins 2021 Stanley Cup Odds

All current odds as of Feb. 10

Don’t Count Out Penguins

The Penguins started the year at +1775 in the Stanley Cup odds and are now at +2400. There’s no sugar-coating this one. Pittsburgh just hasn’t played well, and a lot of things have gone awry.

There’s been internal upheaval created by the shocking resignation of general manager Jim Rutherford, the steady hand on the tiller in Pittsburgh. Ron Hextall was hired this week as his replacement, and Brian Burke added as the team’s new president of hockey operations. That should settle things down in the front office.

The Penguins have named Ron Hextall as general manager and Brian Burke as president of hockey operations.

Full details: https://t.co/gBGqDIMMql pic.twitter.com/0pzDJvwynH

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) February 9, 2021

Sidney Crosby has been fine, while Evgeny Malkin has been lousy. Kris Letang doesn’t have a goal. Defenseman Mike Matheson, acquired in a big off-season deal with Florida for hard-nosed winger Patric Hornqvist, has barely played because of injury.

Last but not least, goalie Tristan Jarry has been terrible, and his backup Casey DeSmith has been only slightly better.

Given the championship pedigree of this team, however, it’s too early to write them off as a possible Cup winner. Jarry was much better than this last year, which is why the Pens felt comfortable trading Matt Murray to Ottawa. Jarry will get better (if it makes Pittsburgh bettors any happier Murray has been atrocious for the Senators), and both Crosby and Malkin will produce more.

There’s no hunger in Pittsburgh right now. They’ve got to find it again.

Vancouver Canucks North Division Odds

Canucks Trending in the Wrong Direction

And you thought things were messy in Pittsburgh.

The Canucks have had a few flickers of quality play this season, but not many. No wonder their odds of winning the North Division have lengthened from +500 to +2200 over the first few weeks of the season. Toronto and Montreal, the two best teams in the North Division, have whacked the Canucks repeatedly. The only team in the division that Vancouver has looked particularly good against is last-place Ottawa.

Still, the pieces are there for this team to pull itself together and challenge for the top of the division. Not saying they’re going to win the Cup. But good Lord, they’re a lot better than this.

EXCUSE US, TYLER TOFFOLI (@tytoff16)!? pic.twitter.com/1gvkYMDmxg

— NHL (@NHL) February 3, 2021

Two things are holding them back. There’s been intense criticism over the decisions to let goalie Jakob Markstrom, defenseman Chris Tanev, and winger Tyler Toffoli walk, while at the same time retaining draft bust Jake Virtanen and some very expensive bottom-six forwards. All that second guessing is creating a very bad vibe. Toffoli just made it worse by scoring repeatedly for Montreal when they faced the Canucks.

Second, forward Elias Pettersson, arguably the team’s best forward, has really struggled out of the gate. He’s going to get better.

But the Canucks may have to make a big move. Team defense has been horrendous, and that could cost head coach Travis Green his job if it doesn’t improve. Ownership isn’t just going to let this season slip away.

The pieces are there for Vancouver. They just haven’t fit at all well together so far. There is some strong value on this NHL future in the North Division.

Minnesota Wild Playoff Odds

Playoff Value for the Wild

Nobody sees the Wild winning the Cup this year, although bettors like them a little bit more now than they did as a 50-1 shot in September. Right now, Minny is out of playoff spot and, because of COVID, we don’t even know when the Wild play again. Love their newest reverse retro look, but otherwise this team has not looked snazzy this season.

Matt Dumba has also only played nine games, and Kevin Fiala got himself suspended. So really, when you add it all up, the fact the Wild are 6-5-0 so far isn’t that bad. Moreover, they still hold value in the NHL Playoff odds in a weak division.

This is a team that is turning over its roster and putting more responsibility into the hands of younger players, and the results have been encouraging. Hulking winger Jordan Greenway, surprise surprise, leads the team in scoring, followed by Joel Eriksson Ek and Kirill Kaprizov. With Devan Dubnyk gone west, the goaltending of Cam Talbot and youngster Kaapo Kahkonen has actually been surprisingly solid.

Kept it very on brand for my first piece @EPRinkside. Wrote about Kirill Kaprizov's instant impact, how he's getting people watching Wild games, and why his style of play will translate well to future success.https://t.co/RvZw1UtRFL pic.twitter.com/WRDMN68aVk

— Dimitri Filipovic (@DimFilipovic) February 4, 2021

The Wild, who have stayed steady at about 10-1 to win their division, may not be good enough to compete with Colorado, St. Louis, and Vegas at the top of the group. But they’re good enough to make the playoffs in the fairly weak West Division. Their current COVID issues will pass, and it could turn out this is a welcome early season re-set. There is less value now at -140, but I believe it’s a number bettors should still be hitting hard on at this point of the season.