In an unexpected twist of fate, the Vegas Golden Knights have become the center of attention in the world of hockey — and it’s Sin City that’s probably going to pay for it.
Back in June, the Knights opened at 150-1 odds to win the Stanley Cup. At some sports books, the moneyline ballooned to as high as 500-1 before Vegas played its first regular season game. It seemed like a preposterous thought at the time, but the expansion team is now just four wins away from completing the greatest and most unlikely championship season in the history of North American sports.
As Las Vegas chugs along to gambling glory, here are some of the other longest long shots in sports who made it to victory, starting with the hottest team in hockey.
GOLDEN STANDARD
How Vegas became the most successful expansion team in sports history
2018 Vegas Golden Knights (150-1)
There are a few layers to unpack here when looking at how improbable this run has been. The Knights set an NHL record for most wins by an expansion team back in February and ultimately smashed the expansion team points record by 26. They've continue their dominance into the playoffs, where they became the first expansion team to sweep a postseason series and knocked out the Sharks in the second round to reach the Western Conference finals. This, of course, after winning a Pacific Division title.
Stanley Cup Playoffs series wins in the past 10 seasons:
— Corey Masisak (@cmasisak22) May 7, 2018
VGK - 2
MIN - 2
CAR - 2
ARZ - 2
WPG/ATL - 1
NYI - 1
DAL - 1
CGY - 1
EDM - 1
TOR - 0
COL - 0
BUF - 0
CBJ - 0
FLA - 0
Vegas as many or more than 43.3% of the rest of the league.
UMBC Retrievers upset No. 1 Virginia (40-1)
Speaking of firsts, one would think that a trend that has gone multiple decades unbroken — No. 16 seeds were 0-135 all time against No. 1 seeds in the NCAA men's basketball tournament — would receive better odds than this in the 2018 opening round. Regardless, it was still amazing to watch a program considered the peak of fundamentals in modern college basketball wind up on the opposite end of the spread against a scrappy mid-major led by an iso-heavy guard. UMBC made history with is 74-54 win.
Howard beats UNLV football (45-point underdog)
Did you know Cam Newton had a brother? Caylin Newton is certainly not as good as his older sibling, but that didn’t matter for Howard’s season opener against UNLV in 2017. Young Newton provided 330 yards of offense for the Bison, rushed for two touchdowns and threw another. The Rebels were shocked at home with the biggest single-game upset in college football history, 43-40.
Leicester City wins Premier League (5,000-1)
Leicester fans who put money down on these odds in 2016 took part in two once-in-a-lifetime moments. Not only did the chippy club capture its first Premier League title in its 132-year history, but oddsmakers swore to never make odds like this again. At the time Leicester's 5000-1 odds were posted, Paddy Power had the chances Elvis was still alive at 2000-1.
St. Louis Cardinals win 2011 World Series (999-1)
“Tony will get you from 4.5 games behind a wild card spot to a World Series in less than two months” sounds more like a bad metaphor for a weight loss program than the reality of the 2011 Cardinals, but it happened. Tony La Russa's Cardinals were 4 1/2 games behind the Braves in the NL wild-card race with 15 games remaining, but snuck into the playoffs in Game 162 during "the most thrilling 129 minutes in baseball history" and went on to beat the Rangers in the World Series. You can always trust Tony to go 11-4 down the stretch to sneak into the playoffs and bring another championship to your city.
Mine that Bird wins 2009 Kentucky Derby (50-1)
Mine that Bird did not have a lot going for him. Couple a mediocre bloodline with a lack of testicles with his bad name and odds, and you get a sad horse that no sane bettor would put money on. So naturally he won the Derby by seven full lengths. Not even the announcer knew what was happening.
Appalachian St. beats No. 5 Michigan (33-point underdog)
Imagine being a Michigan football player or coach on the sideline as your team lines up for a 37-yard field-goal attempt to win the game against an FCS opponent. The thought process probably went like, “This game could not have gone any worse. At least we can still squeak out a win with this ki- ... oh no.” College football is so beautifully painful sometimes. Appalachian State won, 34-32, and the Wolverines stumbled throughout the rest of their mediocre 2007 season.
Greece wins 2004 Euro Championship (150-1)
After losing all three group stage games in the 1994 World Cup, Greece used its next tournament appearance nearly a decade later to defeat Cristiano Ronaldo and host country Portugal 1-0 to win the Euros. Just like everyone predicted, right?
St. Louis Rams win Super Bowl XXXVI (300-1)
Arena football veteran Kurt Warner took his four completions of NFL experience and went on to become the league MVP and win the Rams’ only Super Bowl. Imagine placing this bet, then watching and thinking Kevin Dyson had enough room to score the game-winning touchdown.
1980 U.S. men’s hockey team wins Olympic gold (1000-1)
Do you believe in betting miracles? The American squad of amateurs took down the fearsome Soviet Union in the final group stage of the Olympics at Lake Placid. People often forget the real victory came over Finland for the gold medal, but since they weren’t as intimidating from a “nuclear" standpoint, it wasn’t as great of a story.