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The midway point of the NHL season has come and gone. At this point, we’re pretty sure what most teams are. We also know which players are having sensational seasons. While most teams still have over 30 games remaining on their schedules, we can’t ignore what we’ve seen.
We have some intriguing award races to monitor over the next two months. Which players are the favorites to win each award, according to the betting odds? Is there any value to be had?
Connor McDavid still favored to win the Hart
Connor McDavid opened the season as the Hart Trophy favorite, and he remains there today. McDavid is currently +200 to take home the award given to the league’s most valuable player. Currently, 32% of bets and 56% of the money is backing McDavid to win the award for the second straight year and third time overall.
Unlike 2020-21, McDavid is not a lock this time around. He currently doesn’t even lead the league in points. Last year, he blew everyone out of the water. Additionally, the Oilers are fighting for a playoff spot and have been a huge disappointment overall. Nevertheless, McDavid is the most talented player in the sport and there’s a good chance he leads the league in scoring while playing for a playoff team.
Alex Ovechkin has the second best odds at +400. Through 50 games, Ovechkin has 31 goals and 62 points. He’s having one of the best seasons of his career at the age of 36. At the moment, 11% of bettors are backing “The Great 8” to win the Hart for the fourth time in his career.
Jonathan Huberdeau, Auston Matthews and Leon Draisaitl are all +700 to win the Hart. Huberdeau currently leads the league in points. Matthews and Draisaitl are the co-favorites to lead the league in goals at +200.
One long shot to take a look at is Igor Shesterkin. Since 2002, only one goaltender has won the Hart Trophy (Carey Price in 2015). However, Shesterkin leads the league in most goaltending categories and more importantly, I don’t think the Rangers are even a playoff team without him. Goaltenders don’t usually win the MVP award, but if it’s ever going to happen, this is an example of where it’s warranted. Shesterkin is currently 25-to-1 to win the award.
Shesterkin will almost certainly win the Vezina
While Shesterkin might be a long shot to win MVP, he seems like an obvious choice for the Vezina Trophy. The Vezina goes to the league’s best goaltender. Shesterkin is a clear +130 favorite to win the award and this might be one of the last opportunities to get him at plus-money. Currently, 29% of bets and 55% of the money is backing Shesterkin to win the award.
Shesterkin has a .939 save percentage. In NHL history, no goalie that played over 40 games has ever finished a single season with a save percentage that high. According to Evolving-Hockey, Shesterkin has saved 26.8 goals over expectation this season, the best mark in the league.
The Rangers are 32-13-5 this season despite ranking 29th in the NHL in terms of 5-on-5 expected goal rate. As I said earlier, I’m not convinced this Rangers team is a playoff team with even average goaltending. Shesterkin has them comfortably in a playoff spot.
Behind Shesterkin, Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy is +800 and Calgary’s Jacob Markstrom is at +850 to win the Vezina. Both have had very good seasons, but this is certainly Shesterkin’s award to lose.
The Calder race is wide open
The Calder Trophy is given to the NHL’s best rookie, and it’s certainly a positive development for the league that there are so many intriguing rookies that the race for this award is wide open.
Trevor Zegras of Anaheim and Lucas Raymond of Detroit are currently tied for the rookie points lead. Zegras is currently a slight favorite to win the award at +225 while Raymond is at +250. If the tiebreaker is style points, Zegras certainly has almost everyone in the league beat.
While those two rookies are putting up dazzling offensive numbers, I have a hard time not giving the Calder to Moritz Sieder. Sieder has 35 points on the season, just four behind Zegras and Raymond. The difference is that Sieder is a defenseman. Not only is he producing at a similar level offensively, but he’s also developed into a No. 1 defenseman in his rookie year. Sieder is currently +300 to win the Calder. He’s received 38% of the bets and 51% of the money, both marks are highest among rookies.
Michael Bunting of the Maple Leafs has 17 goals, tied for the rookie lead. He’s currently 9-to-1 to win the award. Anton Lundell has developed well on the juggernaut Florida Panthers, as he’s currently tied with Sieder and Bunting for third in points among rookies. Lundell is 11-to-1 to win the Calder.
An intriguing name to watch is Matthew Boldy of the Minnesota Wild. Boldy has 16 points in 17 games, which is certainly the highest point-per-game production among rookies. He spent the first part of the season in the minors and dealing with some injuries. However, if he continues this pace and finishes with 45-ish points in 50 games, it’ll be tough to ignore him. Boldy is currently 20-to-1 to win the Calder, making him an intriguing long shot.
Cale Makar on his way to the Norris
Cale Makar might be the most offensively talented defenseman we’ve seen in quite a while, which is saying something when you consider some of the defensemen who have dominated the league over recent years. There’s a very good chance Makar will eclipse 30 goals as a defenseman and he can even push the century mark when it comes to points. As a result, Makar is a significant favorite to win the Norris Trophy at +100. Over 70% of bets and 85% of the money is backing the Colorado Avalanche defenseman to win the award.
While Makar has had a tremendous season offensively, he’s not the only defenseman to do so. Roman Josi, Victor Hedman, Adam Fox, Aaron Ekblad and Kris Letang are all currently producing nearly a point per game from the backend. Hedman has the second-best odds to win the award at +400. Fox, the most recent winner of the Norris, is at +550.
While I do think Makar will take the award, Josi currently leads defensemen in points, which makes him an intriguing bet at his current odds of 11-to-1. Ekblad at 25-to-1 is also an intriguing bet if you’re in the mood to fade Makar, which I certainly don’t recommend doing.
Darryl Sutter is the Jack Adams favorite
Recently, I wrote about how I see the Calgary Flames as a legitimate Stanley Cup threat. Their coach, Darryl Sutter, is the current favorite to win the Jack Adams Award, given to the coach of the year. Sutter opened the season at 50-to-1, but he’s all the way down to +350 as Calgary establishes itself as one of the league’s best teams. Sutter won two cups with Los Angeles in 2012 and 2014, but then retired. Calgary pulled him out of retirement and he’s gotten the job done in his first full season.
Andrew Brunette took over as interim coach of the Florida Panthers early in the season after Joel Quenneville was relieved of his duties. Brunette has the second-best odds to win the award at +450. Mike Sullivan continues to win with the Penguins no matter what the circumstances are, and he’s at +650. Gerard Gallant of the Rangers has his team in a good spot in his first year behind the bench, and he’s sitting at 7-to-1 to win. Jared Bednar of Colorado and Rod Brind’Amour of Carolina are both +800.