Just when you make French Open Finals betting your priority, the NHL fights back and gives us a great Stanley Cup series after all.

Much of last night’s exciting Penguins win seemed to be about legs. Is it just me, or was the Penguins’ youth very visible on the ice? It’s not that the Wings are totally ancient, but they definitely have a few guys who have been around the block a few times. The younger Pens are hitting them hard, skating circles around them, and that’s really shifted the NHL betting landscape. Suddenly, sportsbook bettors are piling on the Pens bandwagon.

A big reason why? Poor Henrik Zetterberg is dragging his feet. He hobbled around the ice, finally giving Sidney Crosby room to breathe, and the results were ugly for the Wings. We can’t blame Henrik — he’s playing his heart out — but he can’t do everything on his own. Marian Hossa has to step up, as do Johan Franzen and Tomas Holmstrom. We still don’t know if Pavel Datsyuk will come back in this series, so that means Zetterberg still has the task of shadowing Crosby.

Luckily for the Wings, there’s lots of time between games after Game 5. But the Red Wings’ Stanley Cup betting chances for the next game, even at home, don’t look so great. Sid and Geno are firing on all cylinders, so it may be smart betting management to stick with the Pens tomorrow night.

Am I great Belmont betting horse race jockey? Am I any more of a great hockey player? No. But that doesn’t mean I can’t give my boy Sid the Kid advice.

You know what? The Sid hating is really tiresome. Yes, he has the off-ice personality of unleavened bread, but he’s dynamic, creative player on the ice and, for all his whining, he’s not afraid to get physical at all. So forgive me for trying to help the “crybaby.”

Sid — I know you’re not a natural goal scorer, but you certainly can still score. You had 14 goals in the first three rounds of the NHL betting playoffs, for cryin’ out loud. What was the key? Well, let’s take a look at this SICK highlight video showing his goals vs Ovechkin’s in the second round of Stanley Cup betting. He’s like a tennis player in the French Open Finals odds — getting rid of the puck/ball as soon as it’s on his stick/racquet.

Goal 1 – One quick move into the center, laser wrist shot.

Goal 2 – rebound on the doorstep, immediately jams it in. Dwight Howard would be proud in NBA Finals betting.

Goal 3 – rebound on the doorstep, quickly tucks it in

Goal 4 – has about five whacks, wastes no time, takes about 4,508 shots in two seconds and finally puts it home

I could go on, but you get the picture. It’s all about the RELEASE — Crosby was wasting no time when he had the puck. Against Chris Osgood, he’s trying to do too much right now, dancing, stickhandling, giving Osgood time to cut down the angle on him.

SHOOT, Sid! Keep it simple, like you’re a thoroughbred chasing a carrot in the Belmont Stakes odds. It’s the key to your team’s online wagering hopes.

Sorry. I’m mentally loafing like Rachel “vacation” Alexandra in Belmont Stakes betting. BURN!

But what else can you say in a headline when you’re discussing a guy named Max?

Clap, clap, clap. Anyone who caught Stanley Cup betting on the tube last night probably saw that Pittsburgh’s Maxime Talbot was the best guy on the ice. Back checking, breaking up passes, going into the corner, scoring a couple of goals (hey — even the empty netter was kind of impressive…he shot it from far away!)…he was a force out there for the Penguins.

Some more reasons why Maxime Talbot is cool:

1. He’s scrappy. Gets by on hustle, speed, worth ethic, smarts.

2. Don Cherry loves him even though he’s French. What’s up with that?

3. He’s an impersonator. Remember when he put Crosby’s jersey on during a practice? What a trickster! And I thought Pete Rose was the crazy one for bettin’ on MLB odds.

4. He’s a LADIES’ MAN.

5. He DELIVERS YOUR TICKETS!

Uh, I kind of want to be Maxime Talbot now.  He’s cool and he’s a big reason why the Penguins’ NHL betting hopes just got a lot better. I’m betting management in Pittsburgh didn’t know how much they were getting when they first got this guy.

So much for knowing anything about NHL betting. Thanks, Chris. Thanks, Marc-Andre.

There I was on Friday, discussing Pittsburgh’s goaltending advantage, and both Osgood and Fleury make me look like an idiot.

The Red Wings appeared ready to start up a new Stanley Cup Final odds dynasty in Games 1 and 2. Brilliant gameplan — they fired shots at Fleury from every possible angle, with as many bodies in front of him as possible, never giving him clean looks. Now they’re in his head and he looks shaky. Osgood, on the other hand, not only saw everything shot at him, he was rock solid in stopping it. Was I wrong about the Penguins odds having a chance because of “better goaltending”?

Well, only time will tell. I think the Pens will bounce back in Game 3. But Fleury has to be better — and so do the defenseman protecting him, who are getting beat to the outside repeatedly. If not, Pittsburgh’s chances to come back are the same as mine if I was jockeying in the Belmont Stakes odds.

Worse than no Kobe/Lebron in NBA odds (well, it sure looks that way for the final), steroids — yes steroids — have suddenly been linked to the supposedly squeaky-clean NHL.

Ugh. Everyone knows Sudafed gets passed around dressing rooms like candy, but the NHL odds of steroid use seemed slim to me. But why? Why would NHL players be any different — in fact, speed, strength and explosiveness are as crucial to hockey as they are to any sport, so steroid use in hockey betting would make sense. So maybe I was just in denial.

Worse yet — the Florida couple busted with large amounts of PEDs on them claimed they sold to the Washington Nationals (I doubt that; we’d be seeing results) and, gulp, the Washington Capitals. Unless it was the Penguins, there’s probably not a worse team to pop up in this scandal. The prospect of the world’s best player, Alexander Ovechkin, being linked to steroids is heartbreaking.

How much longer until we concede that every athlete juices and everything returns to normal? Sigh.

Sorry for the downer post — I’ll crank things up tomorrow with a full-fledge rap song previewing Stanley Cup betting. The Penguins vs Red Wings odds should be a sports wagering doozie.