The Canucks to win the Pacific Division and fading Nathan MacKinnon to win the Hart are two of the best NHL value bets
As we approach the All-Star break, we look to bets we can take for the back half of the season that are a great value as of today. Whether it's a team to win Lord Stanley or someone to bring home a trophy, there is a ton of value out on the sportsbooks that people should be taking advantage of before the odds change. Here is our current best value picks that you should take before time runs out.
All betting lines are from Bet365 and are subject to change. Please gamble responsibly.
Vancouver Canucks to win Pacific Division (-140)
This is a tight horse race with the Oilers, Golden Knights and Kings all trying to catch the Canucks. It looks like they should pull it out however as many of these teams have fundamental problems.
The Kings all the way in the back have completely lost their way from earlier this season with two wins in their last 16 games which could be attributed to their goaltending falling apart thanks to an aging Cam Talbot and their top six going ice cold with the third-lowest goals per game during their bad 16 game stretch.
If they can pick things up they will still need to find enough juice to beat the defending Stanley Cup Champion Vegas Golden Knights who’ve been great at home but mediocre on the road this season with a 11-10-4 record away from T-Mobile Arena and a middling 3.08 goals per game average that has them below league average makes the Knights look like even the hockey club from Sin City can’t get over a Stanley Cup hangover.
Lastly, the Oilers have been on a phenomenal run with 16 straight wins and could easily ride their momentum into the playoffs and make a deep run. However, their top six isn’t why they are winning. During their winning streak, their offense has slightly gone up but their goaltending has been stellar with Stuart Skinner and company repping a one and a half goals against per game average that is best in the league, slightly ahead of the Jets.
Goalies can’t stay hot forever which makes me believe this team is primed for an eventual cool down and will be brought back to earth but still in the secondary spot in the Pacific division behind the Canucks, who’ve shown no signs of stopping.
Their offense has been in the top six for goals per game in every month so far this season and their defense has kept opponents at bay and never falling below top seven in fewest-goals against per game in every month so far this season. They will be in the race for the Cup and should look as a legitmate contender near the end of the season.
Hart Memorial Trophy - (Field vs Nathan MacKinnon) (+100)
MacKinnon has been unbelievable this season with 31 goals and 84 points in 49 games so far this season. He is a subtle favourite to take home the Hart Memorial Trophy for the league’s most valuable player, when there are still a couple quality horses behind him still in the race.
Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov has one point more than MacKinnon with 85 and has more games against current bottom ten teams in goals-against per game (12) than MacKinnon (10) which means he should get more opportunities for big point nights.
Auston Matthews and Connor McDavid are also just behind MacKinnon with McDavid helping the Oilers win a Canadian-record 16 straight games and Matthews on pace to score 71 goals, which would be the first time in three decades that someone broke the 70 goal mark since the 1992-93 season, when Alexander Mogilny scored 76 goals.
Matthews also has ten remaining games versus bottom ten defenses with McDavid having seven remaining. It’ll be a close finish for the Hart with four possible resumes that the NHL will have to choose from and I like my chances better with three players covered with this bet rather than just one.