The shutdown from the coronavirus put plenty of future bets on hold. No one knew if the NBA or NHL season would pick back up where they left off or do away with the rest of the regular season.
The NBA is still debating without any firm decisions, but the NHL’s commissioner has announced that the hockey regular season is over. Gary Bettman announced the NHL’s plan to return, if they are able to safely do so, with a jump straight to the playoffs.
They have no dates of a return or any ideas of how to do so. Safety measures still have to be discussed along with the hub cities that they have discussed. But fans do know that the regular season is over.
It was announced that 24 teams would make it to the postseason this year, but that has recently been corrected by the league. There is a qualifying round between the lower seeds since they didn’t have a chance to finish the season.
The NHL has said that this qualifying round is not considered the playoffs. In that case, all of the “yes/no” playoff futures will still be graded.
That’s tough luck for the teams that would have made the postseason anyway, and a blessing for teams that wouldn’t have.
Betting Refunds
Sportsbooks Westgate, William Hill, Circa Sports, South Point, Caesars Entertainment, MGM Resorts, and Golden Nugget will be refunding all wagers on regular-season point totals. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, this is because the house rules indicate that 81 of the 82 games must be played.
For example, the Knights finished with 86 points in 71 games. Their over/under was set at 102.5. Without the chance to reach that total, sportsbooks must refund the initial bets.
There were some laughable “bad beats” that many bettors got out of. The Detroit Red Wings had a terrible season, only garnering 39 points. Their over/under was set at 76.5 with no chance to reach it.
Any overzealous bettors who placed this bet, or many other potential losing tickets, received some good fortune in the midst of the coronavirus.
There are still some questions behind division champions. Division leaders are crowning themselves via social media, but that has not come from the league.
“We’re trying to get the full official statement from the NHL on division winners. The NHL has to recognize them as the division champions,” William Hill sportsbook director Nick Bogdanovich said.
Some sportsbooks have refunded these bets, while others plan to wait for a statement from the NHL.
Live Bets
Fans are excited that a plan for the Stanley Cup has arrived. Future bets for the Cup, along with player awards, are still alive. Even better news for betters with a ticket for a team that wasn’t initially bound for the playoffs.
Now fans look to the NHL and Players Association to form a safe plan to see these bets through. Along with the NBA, they have plenty of decisions to make in the next couple of weeks to continue play.