Different Picks Atop NHL Draft Thwart Perceived Odds

Slafkovsky supplants Wright as Number One Pick
Cooley exploited odds to wind up as a Coyote
Devils, Flyers handle top-rated picks; long odds for next season

Canadiens Tab Juraj Slafkovsky With The Number One Pick

Going through the NHL Draft boards and draft lotteries before last night’s picks were made established the idea that Shane Wright. (-278) would wind up in Montreal with the number one pick before the New Jersey Devils tabulate Juraj Slafkovsky (+175) second.

Please Note:

The perceived top duo didn’t walk side-by-side as Slafkovsky was chosen first by the Canadiens while Wright fell to fourth as he became the property of the Seattle Kraken.

Slafkovsky, who has a solid overall game as noted by the NHL scouts, was sitting with (-200) to be the number two pick until the Canadiens tabulated him as the top choice and he moved as dar as (-180) to be in that position.

Meanwhile:

Two weeks ago, Wright was poised as the top pick as he had odds at (-5000) as such. However, he fell to the (-278) which raised eyebrows as Wright was considered the top playmaker in the draft by many scouts and NHL experts. Seattle’s second season could improve with Wright falling into the Kraken’s hands as they were sitting with (+15,000) odds to win the Cup next season which equates to 30th in the NHL.

Slafskovsky had moved to the odds-on favorite (-150) to the number one choice yesterday afternoon while Wright had fallen to second (+105).

A ‘Cool’ Coyote Finds the Arizona Desert

Logan Cooley’s insertion into Arizona Coyotes’ hockey was also a major deal as he was netted with (+4000) odds as the first pick on Sunday. He had fallen all the way to (+700) by Tuesday evening as that number had although he had postured around (+2000) on several different odds sites.

Cooley shoots left-handed and has been rated repeatedly as the second-best North American hockey player behind Wright.

The University of Minnesota draftee has featured odds at (-229) to be the third-round pick and join the Coyotes. The fact that he was sitting at (+510) as the potential number two pick drew a circle around the Coyotes’ opportunities for Cooley’s potential.

Nemec Rises to Devils; Flyers Pick Gauthier With No. 5 Choice

Defenseman Simon Nemec was considered a long shot and was taken with the second pick in the first round by the New Jersey Devils. Nemec, who is a Slovakian native, like Slafkovsky, had (+7500) odds to be the draft’s number one pick only a week ago.

Nemec was cited as one of the top defensemen in the NHL Draft, but he is also noted with offensive skills centered around his ability to move the puck. He was sitting at (+175) that his odds would go over pick 4.5, but (-220) that the pick would be under the 4.5. Nemec is also proliferated with leadership skills in his defensive mantra as he is noted as a deceiving player with the puck while his physicality and ability to pressure the puck are two major categories.

The Devils’ 2023 Stanley Cup odds are tied with the Anaheim Ducks and Ottawa Senators at (+7500).

Meanwhile:

Also in the NHL Metropolitan Division, the Philadelphia Flyers grabbed a solid pick at center in Cutter Gauthier. The future Boston College Eagle was set with pick number 5.5. As he was the number five pick, hid over odds were (+126) while the number for under 5.5 was (-165). The odds that he would be taken over 6.5 were set at (-280). Scouts and NHL aficionados like Gauthier’s ability to skate and the multiple positions that he plays efficiently on the ice.

The Flyers are poised right now with (+7000) odds to win the 2023 Stanley Cup after they finished last in the division this past season.