Monday Morning Gambler: Golden Knights’ Dramatic Win Just Another Sweat for Bettors
By Dan Behringer for LVSportsBiz.com
Many considered the Vegas Golden Knights 5-4 overtime win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday a statement win.
Admittedly, the VGK rallied for the win. True, the victory kept them in the thick of a precarious playoff hunt. Yes, Evgenii “Daddy” Dadonov has been on fire since the Botched Trade of the Year with an impressive number of points and goals.
But for gamblers, it was just another sweat. Laying -200 and rooting for a win while down 3-0 is not a pleasant way to spend a Saturday afternoon. Getting a better price on the puck line and knowing your ticket is all but worthless just deepens the pain.
“We were running on fumes,” Knights coach Pete DeBoer told reporters. “The guys just dug deep. They recognized the importance of the moment. In the third period, our best guys drug us back in.”
And bettors escaped. Narrowly. Knowing a ticket is good when it probably shouldn’t have been a strange and mysterious feeling.
Next up for the Golden Boys (36-22) is a road trip to play the Seattle Kraken (20-45) on Wednesday. No official line yet, obviously, but we’ll speculate and make the VGK roughly -190 with a total at 5.5.
Elsewhere:
— And then there are four: It’s Duke, Kansas, North Carolina and Villanova in the Final Four of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. If it sounds like the movie “Return of the Blue Bloods,” well, it is. Sort of. If you have all four in your Final Four bracket, we’re suitably impressed. If you’re chagrined because Gonzaga, Arizona, Baylor and a Team of Your Choosing are no longer around, we empathize. But not much — bracketology is a tough business.
At Station Casinos, Duke is +140, Kansas +175, North Carolina +450 and Villanova +550 to win it all.
The semifinal games are Saturday, and the championship game next Monday.
— Almost Final Four: Two women’s team, South Carolina and Stanford have earned Final Four berths to the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. Two more will complete the Final Four in games later Monday between NC State vs. UConn, and also Louisville vs. Michigan. Station Casinos makes South Carolina -105, UConn +250, Stanford +300, Louisville +850, NC State +1000 and Michigan +2000 to win the title.
The semifinals are Friday. The championship game is Sunday.
— Upset or not? When is an upset, not an upset? No. 5 seeded Houston was -3 over No. 2 Villanova on Saturday, which tells you how much Vegas respects seeding in the tournament. The Wildcats punched their Final Four ticket with a 59-47 win. The total went “under” by a whopping 33 points.
— UFC action: Alex Volkanovski (23-1) is -600 vs. Chan Sun Jung, (17-6) at UFC 273 on April 9. Jung is +450 on the buyback. The featherweight event is at Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida.
— O Canada: Current odds at Covers.com to win the World Series have the Los Angeles Dodgers at +450, the Houston Astros at +900, and the Toronto Blue Jays at +915. Both the New York Yankees and the New York Mets are +1100. Opening Day is April 7.
— Aviators to open: The Las Vegas Aviators will open at home April 5 vs. the Reno Aces. It’ll be the first of six games at the cozy Las Vegas Ballpark. Pending the official line, we’re making the Aviators a small favorite for opening night with a total of around 12 or 13. If you’re keeping track of these things, April 6 is Bark in the Park and April 7 is $2 Beer Night.
Dan Behringer is a longtime Las Vegan. Follow posts at doublegutshot.com. On Twitter, @DanBehringer221
