NHL Odds: Cup champs make net change

The defending champion Chicago Blackhawks have made quite a few changes during the offseason, but none was more stunning than agreeing to a one-year deal with 34-year-old former Dallas Stars goalie Marty Turco. The move means that Stanley Cup Finals hero Antti Niemi will not be brought back.

Though Turco has played all nine of his NHL seasons with Dallas, and is a three-time All Star, he has never advanced past the conference finals in six playoff appearances with the Stars.

Turco is 262-154-63 in 509 career regular-season games with a 2.31 GAA and 40 shutouts. He went 22-20-11 last season with a 2.72 GAA and a .913 save percentage. He also registered four shutouts.

The 5-foot-11 native of Sault Ste-Marie, Ontario, who turns 35 this month, is 21-26 with a 2.17 GAA in 47 playoff games.

The 26-year-old Niemi helped the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup this past season after earning $826,875 as a rookie. He was recently awarded a $2.75 million salary an arbitrator last week, putting the Blackhawks in a tough spot.

Niemi, who signed with the Blackhawks in May 2008, now becomes an unrestricted free agent. He played all but one period of Chicago's postseason run to the championship, going 16-6 with a 2.63 GAA, .910 save percentage and two shutouts.

Niemi is the eighth player to leave the Blackhawks since the team won its first Stanley Cup in 49 years. Also gone from the Cup championship team are Andrew Ladd, Ben Eager, Dustin Byfuglien, Brent Sopel, Adam Burish, Colin Fraser and Kris Versteeg. John Madden, a 37-year-old unrestricted free agent, has yet to sign with a team.

The loss of those eight players, plus the starting goalie, has slightly influenced Chicago's future book odds for the 2010-2011 campaign. The Blackhawks went from 4/1 to repeat their Cup title, to 5/1. The Pittsburgh Penguins are now the 4/1 favorite to capture the Cup.

Modano coming home

The imminent signing of Mike Modano by his hometown Detroit Red Wings won't change the club's 10/1 future book odds.

Modano would give the Wings three scoring lines and a better ability to roll all four lines. Both attributes were lacking last season. However, at 40 years old, Modano's high-scoring seasons are behind him.

Modano played 20 seasons for the Minnesota-Dallas franchise and is the leading scorer among U.S.-born players in NHL history. The Stars made the tough decision not to re-sign him in late June.

Looking for a long shot?

Hockey bettors looking for a future book long shot could turn their attention to Atlanta Thrashers at 100/1. The young Thrashers added some proven winners during the offseason when they got Dustin Byfuglien, Brent Sopel, Ben Eager and Andrew Ladd.