- While only three NHL teams had double digit unit win totals where were seven teams that lost double digit units.
- The Calgary Flames were the worst ‘investment’ in the NHL, losing -41.6 units for their financial backers.
- Overall, 21 teams in the NHL finished in the red on a units of profit basis.
Every year we like to look back at recently completed sports seasons and assess which teams made the most money for bettors. At the same time, we cast a jaundiced eye toward the teams that *lost* the most money for the hard working betting public. We’ll get to the ‘profitable’ teams in the coming days but the ‘money losers’ are much more interesting. In fact, this might be a historic season in terms of just how much money the bottom feeders lost for bettors.
You can read about the biggest money winners at the link below:
Most profitable teams in the 2022-2023 NHL season
CALGARY FLAMES (-41.6 UNITS)
Remember how the Boston Bruins ran roughshod over everyone during the NHL regular season? They finished with a record of 65-12-5 and 135 points. That 135 points surpassed the 132 amassed by the 1976-1977 Montreal Canadiens. The Habs of that year are arguably the greatest team in NHL history and swept the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup Finals. Can’t take anything away from the Bruins’ regular season but–spoiler alert–they *didn’t* win the Stanley Cup.
Which brings us to the Calgary Flames. They might be the betting version of the Boston Bruins, only in the wrong direction and judged by the metric of total units lost. The Flames managed to squander away -41.6 units by the time the season mercifully ended. Calgary wasn’t an awful team, ending up with a record of 38-27-17 for 93 points. That would have put them in the playoffs had they been in the Eastern Conference. They were, however, a seriously underachieving team that never came anywhere close to the typically high expectations of their Central Alberta fanbase. Then there’s the Flames’ OT record–when a team goes 5-17 in overtime games it’s not going to be good for bettors. There’s a myth among recreational bettors that really bad teams are the ones that lose the most money. That’s seldom the case. Nothing can burn through a bankroll quicker than an underachiever.
SAN JOSE SHARKS (-31.3 UNITS)
Not that losing teams can’t do damage to the bottom line. The Sharks weren’t the worst team in the NHL–they finished ahead of the Anaheim Ducks, Chicago Blackhawks and Columbus Blue Jackets–but they were bad enough. The real undoing for Sharks’ backers was their brutal 8-22-11 record at home. They were the only team in the league that didn’t hit double digits in regulation wins. Playing in the Pacific Division didn’t help either with four divisional rivals finishing with 100 or more points. The Sharks had the lowest winning percentage in the league (counting all wins/losses regardless of their being regulation, OT or SO) at 26.8%.
ANAHEIM DUCKS (-21.5 UNITS)
Anaheim was also pretty bad at home going 12-25-4 and putting up the worst goal differential in the league (-129). The way that bad teams lose a ton of money is when everyone expects them to be bad and they live up to projections. Some bad teams show backbone in certain situations. Case in point, Montreal finished with only 68 points but they were reasonably competitive at Le Centre Bell going 17-21-3. It’s not inaccurate to say that the Habs weren’t as bad as the betting public thought they were and actually finished ‘in the black’ earning +2.3 units. The Ducks, on the other hand, were exactly what everyone expected them to be.
WASHINGTON CAPITALS (-21.2 UNITS)/PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (-20.4 UNITS)
These teams are mirror images of each other, at least when it comes to the perception of the betting public. They each have one of the most recognizable stars in the sport. Both have won the Stanley Cup within the past few years and both have been competitive throughout. At this stage, however, they’re no longer as good as the betting public *thinks* they are. The mere presence of Ovie and Crosby make them massive ‘public’ teams and their betting lines are shaded accordingly. Sid can still play and few can ‘put the biscuit in the basket’ with the regularity of Ovechkin but they just don’t have the supporting cast necessary to be playing games in late May and June.
