Ice hockey is often a fast-paced blitz of a sport that sees momentum shift from one team to the other in split-seconds. As the natural home of ice hockey, Canada has been witness to some astounding and interesting moments. As well as delighting fans, these pivotal moments in ice hockey have considerably altered the odds held by bookies like Betway and turned betting markets on their heads. 
The great white north is renowned for many things across the world, and one of them is producing some of the most spectacular and raw ice hockey moments that anyone has borne witness to. These moments have not only shaped fan engagement and the history of the sport, but they’ve disrupted and altered betting markets like Betway, sometimes for seasons. This article will cover some of the most interesting and spectacular events in Canadian ice hockey and reveal how they shifted the odds.
Paul Henderson puts it away in the final moments
This moment resonates with Canadian hockey fans to this very day. In 1972 Canada and the Soviet Union engaged in a friendly series of ice hockey games known as the Summit Series. The series was incredibly close, with the Soviet team slowly taking the lead. In the final minute of the final game of the series, Paul Henderson smashed through the game-winning goal and ensured that Canada could claim overall victory for the series.
After this victory, Canadian hockey teams were always viewed very seriously and often favourably by bookmakers. While international moments like these might be few and far between, their ability to cause ripples in betting markets like Betway for decades to come is worthy of note.
Gretzky leaves the Oilers
Not all great moments are confined to the ice, and some of the most important moments in all sports happen outside of the game. This is no truer of any situation than it is of the trade of Wayne Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings from the Edmonton Oilers in 1988. This trade would upset the Oilers’ prospects for seasons while boosting those of the Kings, both teams saw dramatic changes in their odds on betting markets after the trade.
The reason this is such an important moment is that it showed Canadian hockey fans that the movements of single players can severly disrupt an entire team dynamic. This was an important lesson for hockey fans and news of player movements became suddenly important for bettors and bookmakers like Betway.
An underdog run for the Stanley Cup
This is also not a moment, but rather an entire playoff season that shocked bookmakers such as Betway and fans alike. When the Montreal Canadiens entered the 1993 Stanley Cup playoffs, they were underdogs by a severe margin. They had played a good season, of course, but no one, least of all bookmakers, expected them to make it very much further. To the amazement of bookmakers and jubilation of fans, the Canadiens won 10 consecutive overtime games, setting an NHL record and taking the Stanley Cup in legendary fashion.
For obvious reasons, bookmakers at the time were forced to re-evaluate and alter their odds as the playoff season continued and the Canadiens kept pushing further. The long-term affects of their amazing run was a refocusing of importance on goaltending skills by bookmakers like Betway when heading into playoff series. This is due to many contributing the Canadiens victory to the excellent goaltending skills of Patrick Roy.
Sidney Crosby’s golden goal
Another fantastic late Canadian goal on the international stage. The 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver saw the Canadian Olympic team facing the United States for the gold. The United States team had not originally been expected to perform particularly well but had overrun early opponents and had a fierce momentum when they reached their northern neighbours in the gold medal showdown. As the game went into overtime, betting odds on bookmakers like Betway had levelled out to be basically even.
Sidney Crosby skates up ice – Photo by Jack Lima
We know how this story ends, Sidney Crosby’s golden goal has become an iconic moment of modern Canadian hockey fandom. Already positioned strongly, this performance has helped to solidify Canada’s dominance in ice hockey on the world stage. A fact that is represented commonly by betting odds favouring Canadian international teams, especially on their own soil.
The Toronto Maple Leafs break a playoffs curse
While we can’t confirm or deny the existence of curses, teams can assuredly get into a slump of one kind or another. This had been the case for the Toronto Maple Leafs for almost two decades. They would play absolutely fine until the playoffs season, then be unable to clinch a win and be eliminated early. This slump was naturally noticed by fans and bookmakers like Betway alike, causing them to set rather long odds on their winning early playoff matches.
In 2023, the Maple Leafs were able to shake off this malaise and show their mettle by defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning. While they did not actually go on to win the series, their ability to break free of their slump has seen betting odds for them drastically narrow and is seen as a turning point both in team and fan morale.
Conclusion
These amazing moments and times in Canadian ice hockey haven’t just shaped the future of the sport and its fandom, they have direct impacts on betting odds, predictions and the perceptions that bookmakers and fans have of teams and players. From last-minute clincher goals to incredible and surprising playoff runs, moments like these are the catalyst for huge shifts from bookmakers and bettors. These shifts showcase that ice hockey as a sport is far from solved and that it will always have the ability to surprise and thrill fans and bettors.
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