The March Madness betting tournament is entering its second week of action, and for NHL handicappers this means that there is six weeks left in the regular season. In the beginning of July, the NHL betting online world will be center stage, as breeders cup betting fans speculate which teams will scoop up the top free agents. This year's free agency field is one of the weakest in recent memory, as more teams are signing their star players to ridiculously long contracts. Here is a look at some of the top free agents.

Although he has missed various points of the season due to injury, Dallas Stars pending free agent center Brad Richards, is seen by many as the prize of the 2011 free agency class. The 31 year old first line center has accumulated 708 points in 763 career games since entering the NHL in the 2000-01 seasons.

Brad Richards is the absolute definition of a first line center in the NHL and this summer, could have up to 10 teams bidding for his services. Of all the pending free agents, Brad Richards makes an astounding $7.5 million. Meaning to say, teams hoping to win Richards services could be paying close to $10million a season for him.

While Brad Richards is seen by many, as the best forward in free agency, the best defenseman is current Vancouver Canucks star Christian Ehrhoff, who at 28 years old is seen by many as to be entering the prime of his career. Ehrhoff is the definition of a number one defenseman, as he plays against other team's top lines and he is used on the power play and the penalty kill. Ehrhoff is currently making $3.1 million, however if he can help guide the Vancouver Canucks to the Stanley Cup finals, he'll likely receive a huge raise in the offseason.