Brian Burke was a busy man this offseason for the Toronto Maple Leafs, upgrading his defense with Mike Komisarek and Francois Beauchemin, finally acquiring Phil Kessel from the Boston Bruins -- a move that should surely improve an offense that was already in the top-10 in goals scored -- and snagging Swedish goaltending prospect Jonas Gustavsson. Despite the wheeling and dealing, the oddsmakers in sin city -- specifically the Las Vegas Hilton -- are betting on a fifth consecutive non-playoff season for the boys in blue and white, according to Jeff Haney's article for the Las Vegas Sun, which has the over/under point totals for every team in the league.
Among the teams with lowest expectations, according to the odds, are the usual suspects on Long Island and in Phoenix, as well as the Colorado Avalanche. The Islanders have the lowest projection at 70.5, which would be a nine-point improvement.
The Hilton likes the San Jose Sharks to repeat as Presidents Trophy winners with a projected point total of 107.5, something that doesn't seem all that unreasonable when you consider they added a two-time 50-goal scorer (Dany Heatley) to the lineup this offseason. The Sharks are followed by the Detroit Red Wings (106.5) and Chicago Blackhawks (105.5).
In the Eastern Conference, Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals are projected to be on top of the pile with an over/under of 104.5, followed closely by the Philadelphia Flyers and Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins (102.5 projection for both).
Elsewhere, the oddsmakers like the Dallas Stars to rebound from their injury-plagued 2008-09 season and return to the postseason, replacing Columbus. Not only does Vegas not like the Blue Jackets to return to the playoffs, Columbus is projected to finish behind Minnesota, Los Angeles and Edmonton in the Western Conference standings.
