So who got to cash in on their bet on NHL free agency? Plenty of eye-raising deals were made and after the gut-wrenching trades we saw Wednesday hockey betting enthusiasts were ready for anything. Stamkos was no longer heading towards free agency but there was still plenty of talent hitting the market. Most of that talent is already gone. Let’s check in on the signings and see who placed the winning bet on NHL free agency transactions.
Two of the biggest names that were available proved that they were just that by signing the same deal. Kyle Okposo and Milan Lucic both signed for 7-year contracts worth $42 million. Stamkos will be expecting a thank you note from the duo for leaving the market early.
Although they missed out on Stamkos, the Buffalo Sabres were still able to land Okposo. The winger was one of the younger players to hit the market at 28-years old. He’s also one of the biggest weighing in at 220 lbs., but that doesn’t keep him from scoring. With his agility he was able to score 184 points during the span of 210 games over the past three years. That’s the most out of all the forwards available Friday, and this was enough to convince Buffalo to send him this lucrative deal.
The Edmonton Oilers needed someone to replace Taylor Hall after that questionable trade and they were able to find that in Lucic. Sure, they had to give him some incentive for coming over as he was able to sign a long-term deal. “It basically came down to the McDavid factor,” Lucic was quoted as saying. “…I truly believe with a special player like that it’s inevitable he’s going to do something great and that’s something I wanted to be a part of.” Connor McDavid will be playing his second season with the Oilers next year.
Loui Eriksson has signed with the Vancouver Canucks for a six-year deal worth $36 million. During the last three seasons Eriksson was able to score 62 goals and 85 assists while playing for the Bruins.
Former St. Louis Blues Captain David Backes will be heading to Boston. The 32-year-old forward has signed on for a five-year deal worth $30 million. Backes will soon be on the wrong side of 30 and a five-year deal is questionable.
Up in Detroit Pavel Datsyuk is returning to the motherland and the Red Wings have decided to fill that void with Frans Nielsen. The 32-year old Dane has scored 119 goals and racked 230 assists during his 606 career games. Nielsen has spent his entire career with the New York Islanders and it will be interesting to see how he adjusts to a new home.
With the sun setting on the first day of free agency teams are getting ready to patch together a team that can take home the Stanley Cup. Did any of these signings affect your bet on NHL Stanley Cup predictions? One thing for sure is that this upcoming NHL season will be exciting and NHL betting fans will be anxious to know how these new movements will affect their bets.
