Why the Carolina Hurricanes are the Team to Watch Out East

It has been an incredible season in the NHL so far, and it couldn’t get much better with playoffs around the corner. As of April 4th, the Panthers (104 points) and Hurricanes (98) sit at the top 2 spots, followed by the Rangers (94), Maple Leafs (93), Lightning (93), Penguins (92), Bruins (91), and Capitals (84). With the middle five teams all within a point or two, it will be interesting to see where teams sit in just three weeks when the playoffs are about to begin.

It couldn’t be any closer in the East, but there is one team that fans should keep an eye on, especially betting fans who like good value. That team is the Carolina Hurricanes, who are 2nd in the Eastern Conference and 1st in the Metro Division.

Current odds for the Hurricanes to win the Stanley Cup are +1000, which is only behind teams like the Lightning (+900), Flames (+900), Panthers (+550), and Avalanche (+380). Odds for the Hurricanes to just make it to the Stanley Cup Finals are +500, falling behind Lightning (+450) and Panthers (+290). That is great value for a team that’s #2 in the conference if you ask me.

Hurricanes Team Stats Speak Volumes

While I am well aware that the regular season is a different animal than the Stanley Cup Playoffs, statistics from the regular season tell what to expect from teams in the playoffs. Now, if you got this far, you know where the Hurricanes sit in the Eastern Conference standings, but I am here to talk team stats.

First, I will be addressing ranks in the Eastern Conference in categories like Goals For Average (GFA), Goals Against Average (GAA), Power Play Percentage (PP%), and Penalty Kill Percentage (PK%). The Hurricanes currently sit #4 in the East in GFA with 3.32 and a total of 229 on the year. On the other end of the ice, they sit #1 in the entire league in GAA with 2.35 and a total of 162 goals allowed. In the special teams categories, they rank #4 in PP% with 24% and #1 in PK% with 88%.

With the other seven teams also ranked in the same categories, I found the average ranking for the Hurricanes led the rest with an average of 2.5, followed by the Leafs (3.5) and Bruins/Rangers (4.5). Being top five in each of those categories and leading all eight teams with an average rank of 2.5 is pretty interesting to think about, seeing as they have the third-best odds in the East to make and win the Stanley Cup Finals.

Defense Wins Championships, and So Does Offense

Based on the numbers above, the Hurricanes prove to get things done on both ends of the ice, with their offense ranked #4 and defense ranked #1 in the Eastern Conference. Compared to the league as a whole, they still rank #1 in goals against, while their goals for numbers have them sitting at #9. Only 4 points behind the Panthers for #1 in the East, the Hurricanes still have a chance to move up some more with only 13 games to go.

With help from their tremendous goaltender, Frederick Anderson, they have been able to stop opponents from getting it done in the offense. He currently ranks top 3 in all four major goalie categories (wins, GAA, SV%, SO) with a #1 rank in GAA (2.03) and #2 ranks in both wins (33) and SV% (.928). Although Igor Shesterkin is the likely Vezina Award winner, if Frederick Anderson can keep playing at this level, he can certainly help bring home the bigger award for his team, the Stanley Cup.

On the offensive end, they are led by Sebastian Aho (31-38-69), Andrei Svechnikov (27-33-60), and Teuvo Teravainen (18-39-57). Expected to also get over 50 points are forward Vincent Trocheck (18-28-46) and defenseman Tony DeAngelo (10-35-45). They also have three 20+ goal scorers, with two more expected to surpass that by the end of the season. Anytime you have five guys score over 20 goals in a season is a good season to me.

Final Thoughts

Sitting 3rd in the East with +1000 odds to win the Stanley Cup and +500 to make it out of the East while also being the 2nd ranked team in the East is pretty tough to pass up when looking at NHL betting futures. As a non-betting fan, it still becomes a tough choice but also a tough choice to overlook the Hurricanes.

With statistics like GFA, GAA, PP%, and PK% showing they are not only top 5 in each one, but they are also the average the best rankings amongst the other seven Eastern playoff teams. #1 rankings in GAA and PK% will pay dividends down the road when it becomes harder for teams to figure out how to score on this Carolina team. With Frederick Anderson in net, they are sure to do just that.

With an Eastern Conference rank of 4 and an overall rank of 10 in league scoring, the Hurricanes mean business on both ends of the ice. From guys like Aho and Svechnikov to others like Nino Niederreiter and Trocheck, the Hurricanes have the depth to get things done no matter who is on the ice. Defensemen like Tony DeAngelo (10 goals) and Brady Skjei (8) also like to get in the mix on both ends as both also have a +/- of at least +17 on the year.

Still a chance to surpass the Florida Panthers as #1 in the East with only 13 games to go, bet on the Carolina Hurricanes to come out of the east and maybe even sprinkle a little bit on them winning the Stanley Cup as well. It is crazy to think this team has the 3rd best odds in the East for how dominant they have been this season, but it’s also hard to pass up odds like +500 (conference winner) and +1000 (Stanley Cup winner).