The Columbus Blue Jackets have knocked the Tampa Bay Lightning out of the NHL playoffs.
Not only did they bounce the Lightning, the Blue Jackets did it in epic fashion as they closed out the first round 4-0 sweep Tuesday night in a 7-3 win.
Just how big of a win was this for Columbus? As of April 7th, they had the second worst Stanley Cup odds for teams in the playoffs at +3,000. Tampa Bay was first at +250. (RELATED: NHL Ref Takes Puck Straight To The Groin. The Video Will Twist Your Stomach)
#StanleyCup Final odds:
Lightning: +250
Sharks: +800
Blues: +1000
Bruins: +1000
Flames: +1000
Knights: +1000
Jets: +1000
Penguins: +1200
Caps: +1200
Preds: +1400
Leafs: +1600
Islanders: +2200
Hurricanes: +3000
Stars: +3000
Blue Jackets: +3000
Avalanche: +3500 pic.twitter.com/Xn7eVoqwAG— American Gambler (@makeUSbetagain) April 7, 2019
According to Darren Rovell, sportsbooks were offering odds up to 50/1 on a sweep, and nobody was even taking the Blue Jackets on those ridiculous numbers.
PointsBet in New Jersey also said they offered odds on the Blue Jackets to sweep the Lightning. 50/1. No one bet it.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) April 17, 2019
The Stanley Cup favorite Tampa Bay Lightning have been swept by the Columbus Blue Jackets. @DKSportsbook offered 40 to 1 odds at the beginning of the series of this happening. Not a single bettor thought it was worth even a penny.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) April 17, 2019
The question really has to be asked at this point just how big of an upset this series was for both teams involved. Tampa Bay just got embarrassed on a national scale.
The second worst team in the playoffs by the odds smoked them in four games. They were the favorite to win the Stanley Cup, and they didn’t even win a single game.
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Is this as big of an upset as the Miracle on Ice? No, and it’s not even close to that, but it’s one of the biggest upsets in recent sports history.
I can’t even think of the last time the heavy favorite in a sport got swept by such a large underdog. I don’t care if you love hockey or not.
What the Blue Jackets pulled off is impressive as all hell, and everybody without their team in it should be cheering for them.
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Major props to everybody in Columbus. They’ll now play the winner of Boston and the Maple Leafs. As for Tampa Bay, they might want to do some serious soul searching.
Their squad this year will go down as one of the most embarrassing postseason teams of all-time.