NHL Awards: Odds, bets to consider
One week after the St. Louis Blues' Stanley Cup Final win over the Boston Bruins, there's still technically an opportunity to make bets on the 2018-19 NHL season. The league will close the curtain on the campaign on Wednesday with its annual awards ceremony, which is open to the betting public.
Here, we cover the odds and dig into a handful of the best bets on some of the tighter fields.
Overwhelming favorites
Hart Memorial Trophy
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Nikita Kucherov (TBL) | 1-33 |
| Sidney Crosby (PIT) | 8-1 |
| Connor McDavid (EDM) | 12-1 |
Kucherov was the cornerstone of the 62-win Lightning team during the regular season, leading the league with 87 assists and finishing with 128 points - 12 more than the second-most productive skater (McDavid). It's about as surefire as it gets for MVP.
Calder Memorial Trophy
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Elias Pettersson (VAN) | 1-20 |
| Jordan Binnington (STL) | 9-2 |
| Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) | 40-1 |
Pettersson, the No. 5 overall pick of the Canucks two years ago, notched 28 goals and his 66 points comfortably led all rookies. There might be some recency bias regarding Blues netminder Binnington leading up to the ceremony, as Pettersson was as long as 1-33 earlier in the week.
Bill Masterson Memorial Trophy
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Robin Lehner (NYI) | 1-33 |
| Joe Thornton (SJ) | 15-2 |
| Nick Foligno (CBJ) | 14-1 |
In authoring one of the league's best bounce-back seasons, Lehner finished second in save percentage and third in goals-against average, serving as the backbone of the Islanders' run into the postseason. And he did so after opening up about his addiction and bipolar disorder diagnosis, making him the easy choice as the player "who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey,"
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Aleksander Barkov (FLA) | 1-12 |
| Ryan O'Reilly (STL) | 9-2 |
| Sean Monahan (CGY) | 18-1 |
Barkov is another pricey favorite, this time for the award given "to the player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability." The 23-year-old forward built off his 78-point breakout campaign in 2017-18 with 35 tallies and 61 assists this past season.
James Norris Memorial Trophy
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Mark Giordano (CGY) | 1-10 |
| Brent Burns (SJS) | 13-2 |
| Victor Hedman (TBL) | 14-1 |
Giordano had always been a steady contributor on the Flames' blue line, but broke out in a big way as part of the high-powered offense this season with career highs in assists (57) and points (74). He leads the pack over Burns and Hedman, the last two recipients of this award.
Bets to consider
Frank J. Selke Trophy
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Ryan O’Reilly (STL) | -270 |
| Patrice Bergeron (BOS) | 5-2 |
| Mark Stone (VGK) | 13-2 |
O'Reilly, who just took home the Conn Smythe, finished with a 56.9 percent success rate at the faceoff dot and led all Blues forwards with a 42.53 expected goals against percentage. There could also be some voter fatigue with Bergeron, who's been nominated for the award in eight straight seasons.
Vezina Trophy
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Andrei Vasilevskiy (TBL) | -320 |
| Ben Bishop (DAL) | 5-2 |
| Robin Lehner (NYI) | 18-1 |
Vasilevskiy backstopped the Presidents' Trophy-winning Lightning, but we question if his odds should be this strong. He was playing behind the league's No. 1 offense, while Bishop was stopping pucks behind the Stars' No. 28-ranked offense. And despite a limited sample size of just 46 games, Bishop led the NHL in save percentage and finished second in goals-against average.
Jack Adams Award
| Coach | Odds |
|---|---|
| Jon Cooper (TBL) | -105 |
| Barry Trotz (NYI) | +140 |
| Craig Berube (STL) | +450 |
All three coaches are deserving in their own right. Cooper led his team to the league's best record, Trotz carried the Islanders sans John Tavares in his first season at the helm, and Berube took St. Louis from last place in January to the playoffs.
Trotz's story could win voters over, but we'd lean to Cooper, who oversaw a record-setting regular season.
Alex Kolodziej is theScore's betting writer. He's a graduate of Eastern Illinois who has been involved in the sports betting industry for 11 years. He can quote every line from "Rounders" and appreciates franchises that regularly wear alternate jerseys. Find him on Twitter @AlexKoIodziej.