So far, hockey betting has at the very least treated us to scome scintillating peformances in the Penguins vs Capitals odds. Now it’s time to ask those betting online whether or not we’re witnessing the demise of the Peguins’ 2008-09 season. Is a 2-0 series deficit insurmountable or will the Pens climb right back into the series at home?

I want to say the Pens will bounce back. The Caps’ defense still hasn’t looked great and the Pens’ power play has been fine with Sergei Gonchar playing quarterback. However, aside from Sidney Crosby’s inspired effort (say what you want about his whining re: hats on the ice, but his own hat trick last night was impressive) and Marc-Andre Fleury’s solid if unspectacular play, there isn’t a lot for Penguins odds supporters to cheer about so far in this series.

Do the Pens have depth or “depth”? In round one, the secondary scorers chipped in, but now it seems no one wants to help Sid. Even Evgeni Malkin has disappeared off the face of the Earth and seems “intimidated by Ovechkin” according to some hockey betting pundits.

Time is running out for the Pens to recover in this series. The Caps showed the Rangers that they can be road warriors, Alexander Ovechkin is absolutely flying right now and Simeon Varlamov continues to play with the type of poise that makes you think he may not fully understand the magnitude of the Stanley Cup odds.

Your move, Pittsburgh. More specifically: your move, Evgeni. Will you respond?

Events like the Kentucky Derby odds and the Pacquiao vs Hatton boxing odds are about to take center stage in the sports betting world, so we hockey betting fans may as well retreat into the shadows and muse away on what’s becoming an interesting first round.

- Maxime Talbot’s courageous battle against heavyweight Daniel Carcillo in Game 6 Saturday raised an interesting online wagering debate between me and my pals. Some of my friends think the “fighting when you’re team is down to create a spark” theory is overrated, but who can ignore the fact that the Penguins rallied from a 3-0 deficit to win after that fight? And Talbot is reportedly a very popular guy in the dressing room.

- Did I miss something in the John Tortorella/Capitals fan brawl during Game 5 of the Rangers vs Capitals odds? Didn’t the guy dump a beer on Torts? And he gets suspended for retaliating? Nice job, NHL — you just told fans “go ahead and dump beer on coaches. They’ll get suspended.” See the incident for yourself:

- Love him or hate him, Pierre Maguire really knows what he’s talking about.

- As tough as the Flames vs Blackhawks odds have been, neither team has showed a ton of mental toughness so far; it’s been a “hit at home, wilt on the road” series for both teams, so Calgary should be a no-brainer sportsbook pick to win Game 7. Unless one of these squads shows an ability to win away from its own rink, the winner of this series could be ousted quickly in round two of the Stanley Cup odds.

Sid the Kid got plenty of hockey betting love last week, so I don’t feel bad for back-to-back days of Ovechkin talk.

The troll in Ovie’s arms is his mom, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in basketball. Yep, his genes are better than Levi’s. Ahem, uh…moving on.

Something special happened in the Capitals vs Rangers line last night, when Washington beat the Rangers 4-0 to make the series 2-1 and stay in the hunt. It wasn’t just that the Caps forwards who really clicked, moving the puck beautifully. The defensive side of the game was a huge plus, and sportsbook watchers took notice. Not only did rookie goalie Simeon Varlamov stand on his head again, but Ovechkin was a force on defense, twice breaking up quality scoring chances with sliding plays.

The crown jewel in last night’s online betting tilt came when Ovechkin turned over the puck to Lauri Korpikoski, then chased him the length the ice like he was a receiver in the backfield and stopped a breakaway with a clean, sliding stick check.

The Capitals odds are back, folks, and Washington looks confident again. Something tells me this NHL betting series is far from over.

Side note: Lauri Korpikoski? Don’t you think someone with that name should look more like this…

Than this: