The 2011 Kentucky Derby betting race set for this Saturday is right in the middle of the NHL’s playoffs. With only eight teams remaining in this year’s race to the cup, hockey betting online enthusiasts are having a difficult time predicting who will play for the Stanley Cup. Today, we will be looking at two teams that should be able to make it to the finals.

Come the beginning of June when the Stanley Cup finals begin, the two teams left standing will be the Eastern Conference Champion Tampa Bay Lightning and the Western Conference Champion San Jose Sharks. Over the last few years, if there were any two teams synonymous with the phrase ‘choke artists’ it would be the Lightning and the Sharks.  However in 2010 – 11, both franchises made strides that have allowed them to play some of the best hockey we have ever seen.

In the Eastern Conference, if you had told anyone that you expected the Tampa Bay Lightning to make it past the first round, despite all of their talent, nobody would have believed you. Conversely, it seems like there are more betting lines predicting when the San Jose Sharks will lose instead of when they will finally get over the hump.

As it stands right now, the Tampa Bay Lightning are one win away from booking their ticket to the third round of the playoffs, while the San Jose Sharks, have an opportunity to go up three games to none on the Detroit Red Wings.  On paper, both of these teams have all of the tools to go on an extended run in the playoffs. However, given that each team has gotten our hopes up in the past and fallen short, we are optimistic but with caution. Look for the Sharks to finally get over the hump and win the franchise’s first Stanley Cup title, if they are able to make it to the finals against Tampa Bay.