Hard to believe sportsbook betting on the Winter Olympics is so close…close enough that we’ll start seeing major nations announce their rosters in the coming weeks.

I had a funny thought today — one that contradicts my earlier opinions. As much as were used to seeing half a dozen teams battle hard for the gold — Canada, Russia, USA, Sweden, Finland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia — I’m suddenly wondering if two teams are head and shoulders above the competition.

Naturally, the two main contenders are Canada and Russia. I’ll save a comparison or discussion about them for another day. Instead, I want to focus on why the other teams’ sports betting prospects suddenly seem slimmer.

For whatever reason, it seems the Czechs, Slovaks and Finns haven’t produced as many top-flight NHL prospects of late. In fact, in the last two drafts combined, none of those nations has produced a first-round pick. That’s a far cry from the days when Teemu Selanne and Marian Gaborik topped draft boards.

For the Americans and Swedes, the problem is purely temporary. They’re producing boatloads of elite youngsters — Erik Johnson, Victor Hedman, Erik Karlsson, Peter Mueller, and so on — but many of their top players will be a bit young to compete with the big boys. Sure, the Americans have Patrick Kane and Zach and the Swedes have Henrik Zetterberg and the Sedins, but those elite players wouldn’t even be first liners on Canada or Russia, who can ice Crosby, Iginla, Malkin, Ovechkin and so on.

It’s also worth noting that many key contributors from the 2002 and 2006 Swedish and American Olympic teams — Markus Naslund, Mats Sundin, Mike Modano, Keith Tkachuk — are either retired or well past their prime.

As NFL betting teams will eventually do with the Green Bay Packers, Canada and Russia will have major competition on their hands for 2014 and beyond once the Swedish and American youngsters grow up a bit. In 2010, though, hockey odds suggest the gold will go to Canada or Russia.

What up, sportsbook hockey bettors. The last time we spoke, it was regarding the Jonathan Toews hit. What’s happened since then? Well, Toews still hasn’t played (though he hopes to suit up tonight) and we’ve seen half a dozen more NHLers fall to concussions, not to mention an OHLer go into intensive care.

To me, the scariest hits of the ones we’ve seen recently aren’t the fluky (Iginla on Souray, who happened to fall just as he was getting hit) or the dirty (the Mike Richards on David Booth hit, perhaps?). It’s the clean ones. Starting with Toews, were’s seeing guys get concussed — KO’d — with clean, crisp hits. I still wonder if the vicious OHL hit was even dirty, as the perpetrator was forechecking a defenseman who had the puck and was facing him.

The truth is that the NHL betting landscape is changing because the game is so fast — Autobahn fast. The obstruction rules are gone and the guys are just flying out there — so much that collisions are more devastating than ever before. Defensemen can’t pick guys or grab sweaters or do anything to slow anyone down. The result is a more exciting and finesse-oriented game — but also a more dangerous one.

Damien Cox in the Toronto Star today had an interesting idea. If we can’t do anything to stop clean but hard hits, we can find other ways to protect guys from brutal hits — like removing the puckhandling anti-goalie trapezoid. If goalies could play the puck in the corner, defenseman wouldn’t get crushed as often in races for the puck.

NFL betting fans know what it’s like to have their league institute rules to protect the vulnerable (like punters and quarterbacks who get hit while performing their tasks). Maybe it’s time for hockey to undergo similar changes.

If nothing changes, expect hockey odds to fluctuate throughout the year as one big star after another goes down to a head shot.

OK, offshore sportsbook lovers, it’s time to play…PANIC/DON’T PANIC!

It’s easy to have knee-jerk reactions to certain teams or players’ slow starts just a few weeks into the season. I’m here to sort through them for you.

PANIC: Detroit is banged up and starting slowly

Do I think Detroit will miss the playoffs? Of course not. Do I think the Wings will take a step back and possibly even lose home ice in the first round? You bet. After Johan Franzen’s serious knee injury, the Wings are now missing four of their top six goal scorers from last season. Gulp.

DON’T PANIC: Buffalo is the no-scoring zone

Aside from their outburst against Detroit, the Sabres have struggled to find the net early in 2009-10 and that’s ironic, because scoring should be one of the only things they do well this season. They still have plenty of speedy, soft-handed forwards, so the goals will come. So will the losses (Craig Rivet is their top defenseman).

PANIC: The Toronto Maple Laughs

The Leafs aren’t nearly as bad as their record suggests, but they’re in a hole already. I envisioned them as a fringe team, on the cusp of finishing eighth or ninth in the East, but a start this slow could put them too far back in the pack to contend already.

DON’T PANIC: Bruins aren’t so big and bad

Boston has stumbled out of the gate and people are turning on their NHL betting odds already. Relax, everyone! Boston opened with five straight home games, which could be a curse instead of a blessing. Road trips, especially early in the season, give players crucial bonding time. Expect the Bruins to rally now that they’re hitting the road.

PANIC: Caps getting scored on as much as they score

As flashy Washington’s offense is, the Caps have lost four of their first six games. Ovechkin, Semin and company will keep the Caps’ Stanley Cup odds afloat but Washington seriously lacks blueline depth and neither Jose Theodore nor Simeon Varlamov looks like a clear-cut No. 1 goalie right now. Unless the Caps acquire some help, they’ll stay stuck in neutral. I’m betting management considers making a move soon.

I’ve been immersed in sportsbook betting lately, with hockey back, the baseball playoffs and the NFL in full swing. But that doesn’t mean I don’t have time to dis the guys I don’t like for 2009-10!

Here are some guys who could cost you money in your hockey odds betting this season. Some will be busts with new teams, some are getting old, others are just douchebags. Here they are, in random order.

Niklas Backstrom (the goalie) — Not to be confused with Washington’s stellar playmaking center. Let’s see…locked up cushy long-term contract…defensive-minded head coach Jacques Lemaire left town…yep, that’s a recipe for way more shots — and goals — on Backstrom. (Side note: last year in my fantasy hockey pool, I had the No. 32 and No. 33 picks overall. I took Niklas Backstrom and Nicklas Backstrom back to back. Was I the first guy ever to do that?)

Marion Gaborik — One healthy season didn’t convince me that Chad Pennington’s NFL odds of getting through 2009 healthy were good. Gaborik will be lucky to play half the year with that groin of his.

Jamie Langenbrunner - Career year last year for a first-line guy with second or third-line talent. Don’t expect a repeat with Lemaire back behind the bench.

Alexander Ovechkin — Just kidding! Wanted to make sure you were still reading.

Pekka Rinne - Nashville goalies are cursed; every friggin’ last one of ‘em wins the job midseason only to lose it to the backup the next year.

Nicklas Lidstrom - Sacrilege! Don’t get me wrong — I rank him as the second-best defenseman ever to play the game — but he’s almost 40. Niklas Krownwall is getting really good really fast, so Detroit can start cutting back Lidstrom’s ice time.

Marty Turco - He’ll never be a star No. 1 goalie again. He’s older than you may think — 34 — and I’d be shocked if Dallas re-signed him. Who takes the plunge on him next year? Seems like a Philly thing to do. I’m betting management considers it.

Jonathan Cheechoo — He was miscast in his short-lived sniper role in San Jose. He’s more of a blue-collar player who can chip in occasional offense now with his speed and ability to drive to the net. I wouldn’t expect a major performance spike in Ottawa.

A shorter list, but I stand by my picks.

If you bet at a sportsbook, you know there’s nothing wrong with stealing ideas. You overhear a guy make a compelling argument as to why the Lions will be the Redskins in NFL betting, you place a wager. No harm, no foul. Well, I’ve taken it upon myself to steal another idea — “Guys I like” and “Guys I don’t like” for the upcoming NHL season.

If you’re the type of bettor who factors individual performances into your hockey odds betting, remember these names as potential contributors to your success this season.

Anaheim’s top line — Ryan Getzlaf, Bobby Ryan and Corey Perry. My pick to be the NHL’s most dominant first line this season.

Blake Wheeler — For all the hype Milan Lucic gets in Boston, Wheeler has fantastic hands and agility for his size. Maybe he’s the next Cam Neely.

Derick Brassard — He really looked like he belonged as Rick Nash’s centerman last year. This season, he’ll have better injury luck and help take Nash to new heights.

Valtteri Filppula - Somebody has to eat up all those power-play minutes and ice time with Datsyuk and Franzen in Detroit after Hossa and Hudler blew town.

Drew Doughty — I think he can make the leap into true offensive relevance as a sophomore.

Claude Giroux — Could see first-line duties with Simon Gagne good for an injury every year.

Chris Kunitz — A heady, well-rounded player who can be a defensive conscience on Crosby’s line.

Mikael Samuelsson — Only a matter of time before Vancouver puts him with the Sedins.

There you have it — some guys to think about. There aren’t the only guys I like — Jonathan Toews and Alexander Ovechkin are clearly good at hockey — but just some names you may be forgetting who could surprise this season. Remember that when you do your betting management.

If this was an NFL betting blog and I said something like “Cowboys will go 0-16 this season,” would I risk as much negative backlash as I am with today’s Pucking Bets headline?

It’s too early to truly commit to an Olympic prediciton without rosters fully set, but I have a few growing concerns. Here are a few reason why Canada could disappoint in Vancouver.

BAD, BAD HISTORY AS THE OLYMPIC HOST

Canada hosted the Summer Olympics in 1976 (Montreal) and the Winter Olympics in 1988 (Calgary). Guess how many gold medals it won? ZERO. In both Olympics combined. For whatever reason, Canada has an embarrassing history of totally choking as the host nation. The Canadians are dumping money into their development program this time around, but don’t you think they worked hard the last time they hosted? Now, the hockey team faces more pressure than perhaps any Canadian team since the 1972 Summit Series squad. Would it be that big of an online betting shocker if they crumbled in 2010?

BIG-GAME EXPERIENCE AT FORWARD

Perusing Canada’s list of candidates to make the team, it suddenly seems like the forwards could be  short on Stanley Cup experience. Vinny Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis, Brad Richards, Eric Staal — all are cup winners and all are considered long shots to make the team right now. Aside from Sidney Crosby, many of Canada’s big guns haven’t won the big game yet, including Jarome Iginla, Rick Nash, Mike Richards, Dany Heatley and Joe Thornton. Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry have Cups but weren’t depended upon to be the top stars on the Ducks that season.

QUESTION MARKS IN GOAL

Martin Brodeur is the only “sure thing” between the pipes for Canada but age and injuries are starting to creep up on him, as he missed significant time to injury last season. Roberto Luongo hasn’t gone deep into the Stanley Cup playoffs; Cam Ward is battling back pain; Marc-Andre Fleury has a cup now but has choked in international play before. There’s no shortage of talent, but dont’ you think Sweden (Henrik Lundqvist) and USA (Tim Thomas) seem at least more secure right now?

THE RUSSIANS ARE ATTACKING!

I’m betting management of team Canada is having nightmares about the Russia forwards. There are just…so…many…superstars. It’s hard to imagine Canada stopping all of Ovechkin, Malkin, Datsyuk, Kovalchuk, Semin, Kovalev and so on…someone will find the net.

There you have it — a few reasons why Canada’s hockey odds aren’t so stable for the Olympics just yet. Something to consider.

Hockey betting fans weren’t exactly on the edge of their seats, but Dany Heatley’s press conference today was a topic of interest. After weeks of hockey brass and disgruntled fans putting words/soothers in this mouth, he broke his silence.

Did we learn anything? Hardly. Breaking news! Heatley wanted more choices for trade destinations! What a bombshell!

So he wanted to go to California. What player wouldn’t want that versus Edmonton, by far the northernmost city in the NHL?

What interests me most about Heatley’s situation isn’t his next home. It isn’t his diminished role on the Senators or possibly losing the “A” from his sweater or any of that mumbo-jumbo.

It’s that “between the lines” theory that always hides behind any seemingly out-of-nowhere trade request in hockey. Think about it. Why would Heatley sign a multi-year deal and hit the ejector seat after one year?

I don’t want to make any accusations or claims that what I’ve heard is true. But, based on what I’ve heard through the grapevine, something may have gone down between Heatley and Spezza. Something similar to what may have happened between these players:

- Eric Lindros and Rod Brind’Amour

- Gary Leeman and Al Iafrate

- Tony Amonte and Jeremy Roenick

- Theo Fleury and Doug Gilmour

- Mike Comrie and Tommy Salo

- Shayne Corson and Alexander Mogilny

Reportedly, in each of those cases, one of the players found himself traded, requested a trade, or left the team. Again — I don’t want to drag any names through the mud. But let’s just say the rumors involved a certain biblical commandment about coveting thy neighbour’s wife. And we know Heatley jumped ship on Spezza’s wedding.

Sure would explain why Heatley wants out of town so badly, wouldn’t it?

The American betting community lost one of its beloved figures to retirement today. Well, beloved is probably an overstatement — it’s not like hockey gets the love that NCAA football betting or basketball or even poker gets in the U.S. — but the bottom line is that Jeremy Roenick is one of the best hockey players ever to hail from the Land of the Free.

Here’s hoping he goes into broadcasting. While he sometimes seemed to be an attention hog, Roenick was a great personality for the game. He was honest yet charming and that lends well to a good color commentary guy in the mold of Brett Hull. I’m betting management in Chicago and Philadelphia TV stations try to nab him for color work very soon — maybe even in time for the 2009-10 season.

Congrats, Jeremy. You’ve had a great career and, while you never got that Stanley Cup ring, I’ll make a sports prediction that you make the Hall of Fame. We’ll miss ya, bud.