It has been a tough start for the Golden Knights as they try to win their first game. It was an exciting opening night, but it ended up in a 2-1 loss against Dallas.
The “hockey predictions for tonight” is a new app that has been released by the NHL. The app allows users to watch hockey games, get real-time scores and more.
The ballots for the 2021-22 NHL Awards will be released shortly, which means it’s time to start placing bets.
I do not gamble on the NHL Awards as a voting member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association. In our NHL Awards Watch, I have a monthly platform that documents how voters are thinking about each award and includes my personal perspective. I’ve seen analysis impact other voters’ judgments previously, so betting on the Oscars seems a bit too much like “insider trading” to me.
But what about you? If you know where the wind is blowing, there’s money to be made in award voting.
Let’s get one thing straight: don’t spend your time voting for the Vezina Trophy. The New York Rangers’ Igor Shesterkin is a -1000 favorite to win the award. He controls more than 70% of the market. He’ll win by a landslide.
Now let’s move on to the more disputed honors…
The Hart Trophy is a prestigious award given to
Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs is a fan favorite (-350)
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers (+400) is the runner-up.
New York Rangers’ Igor Shesterkin (+2200) is a long shot.
Matthews seemed to have a good handle on the situation.
There’s a reason he’s had over 51% of the MVP betting handle. His 58 goals established a new single-season record for the Toronto Maple Leafs, and every time someone sets a new norm for an Original Six club, it’s major news. He boasts a stunning 2.00 goals per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play, as well as a points per game average (1.46) that is comparable to McDavid’s (1.47). Matthews has also never won the award, coming in second last season for the Hart. The electorate enjoys crowning a new monarch.
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Recency bias may also affect voting, which is why Shesterkin is now a long shot, following Matthews, McDavid, Florida Panthers forward Jonathan Huberdeau (+1600), and Calgary Flames forward Johnny Gaudreau (+1600). For the first three quarters of the season, he was the Rangers’ primary goaltender, but his stats have dipped as the club has found its stride. He has a save percentage of.935, which is excellent but not an all-time high. Shesterkin most likely required a “all-timer” to compensate for the fact that he’ll have only played in around 65 percent of his team’s games, significantly less than previous Hart Trophy winners over the last 25 years.
It’s worth noting that McDavid has a higher percentage of tickets (26.1%) than Matthews (19.8%), but we’re guessing that a lot of that betting occurred before Matthews began on his goal-scoring run.
The Norris Trophy is awarded to the best athlete in the world.
Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche is a fan favorite (-160)
Roman Josi, Nashville Predators (+135) is the runner-up.
Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning (+5000) is a long shot.
Makar was the preseason favorite to win the award for top defender (+400) and he is still the favorite as the season winds down. He’s repaid his faith with 82 points in 71 games and a plus-48 rating. In other words, he has done nothing to dissuade the voters from awarding the Colorado defenseman his first Norris Trophy before the season began. As a result, Makar owns 70.1 percent of the handle.
At those odds, though, there’s a lot of value in taking a gamble on Josi. He may not have had the same overall season as Makar, but it might be masked by one of the finest scoring seasons ever by a defender. Six games remain for the Predators. Josi will break into the top 20 single-season point totals for a defender in NHL history if he scores six more points to finish with 94. That would be a defenseman’s greatest offensive production since the 1990-91 season.
There’s a risk Makar’s candidacy may be overshadowed by the team’s spectacular offensive season and the late fanfare Josi has received as a probable MVP contender. He did, however, win the Norris in 2020, whilst Makar is still looking for his first.
The Calder Trophy is awarded to the best athlete in the world
Moritz Seider of the Detroit Red Wings is a fan favorite (-250)
Trevor Zegras, Anaheim Ducks (+500) is the runner-up.
Michael Bunting, Toronto Maple Leafs (+750) is a long shot.
This is one of the most intriguing prizes on the schedule. For the previous several months, Seider has had the inside rail, as seen by his 44.6 percent ticket percentage and the handle (65.3 percent ). The Red Wings defenceman has the most points (47), as well as the most ice time per game, among all rookie blueliners (23:05). He has been consistent in all of Detroit’s scenarios. He’s a good option, but not as good as Zegras, the winger who has 57 points in 70 games and has been featured in more highlight reels than any other NHL player this season.
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For the record, forward Lucas Raymond, one of Seider’s teammates, has better odds than Zegras at +450, but he hasn’t had the best season.
However, in the rookie scoring race, Zegras and Raymond are both behind Bunting, who has 63 points in 76 games and is even better statistically with 25.9 goals scored beyond expectation, which is more than McDavid! Currently, he owns just 2.7 percent of the handle.
There’s a lot of useful information here. This prize is generally given to rookies who have the most goals and points among their peers. Bunting isn’t the favorite since he’s 26 years old, and there’s a stereotype that “older” rookies aren’t as good. But I anticipate the argument to continue throughout the voting, and Bunting will win the debate — and rookie of the year — as a result.
This is our favorite weekend.
Chalk’s David Purdum noted this weekend that NHL favorites went 14-0 on Saturday. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, it was the first time all the favored teams won on a 14-game slate since they started tracking such things in the 2017-18 season.
However, favored teams’ dominance extends well beyond that. On Friday, the favorites went 2-0. The Buffalo Sabres’ moneyline moved extremely late into favorite area before their victory against the Flyers on Sunday, and they won 6-0.
Favorites in the NHL went 22-0 in three days.
As playoff teams continue to strive for better seeding or, in the Western Conference, seal postseason spots, it’ll be fascinating to watch how this moneyline pattern plays out over the following several weeks. Meanwhile, the “have-nots” are nearing the end of a psychologically and physically draining season.
2 Related
Trick or fad?
Props were photographed by Leon Draisaitl.
The most surprising aspect of the Edmonton Oilers’ 4-0 victory against the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday night was their star center’s shot total: zero, marking just the fourth occasion this season and the second time in 2022 that Draisaitl has gone without a shot. He’s gone under in three of his last five games after clearing 3.5 shots in six consecutive. That is, however, a simple TRICK: Draisaitl is a high-volume shooter in the NHL who is attempting to catch Auston Matthews for the league goal-scoring crown this season.
The second period has ended for the Buffalo Sabres.
The Sabres have seen a lot of activity in their second periods, according to Chris Otto. The Sabres have gone over 1.5 goals in eight consecutive second periods and 14 of their last 15 games. Buffalo allows an average of 1.12 goals per game in the second period, while allowing 1.27 goals per game in the third. As the season draws to a conclusion, we’ll go ahead and say this is a TREND to keep an eye on.
The Blue Jackets of Columbus are a huge underdog.
On Sunday, Columbus was defeated 6-4 by Anaheim. It was an unusual number: it was just the second time in seven games that the total had gone over in a Blue Jackets game. Which is incredible considering Columbus had gone 43-21-5 against the spread before to this span. They still have the greatest proportion of games that have gone over this season (62.5 percent), so we’ll call this hiccup a TRICK for the action-packed Jackets.
The “nhl pickswise” is a website that provides betting information for the NHL. The site has been around for a while and offers a great way to keep up with your favorite team’s performance.
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