The NHL has again given us their popular All-Star Weekend, full of hockey’s biggest stars and plenty of cool skills competitions to go along with it.
The NHL All-Star Weekend Game is the last event in a long weekend full of action on and off the ice, featuring celebrity coaches, red carpet welcomes, and of course tons of goals and perfect passes.
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NHL ALL-STAR SKILLS COMPETITION – OUTRIGHT WINNER
Who is the most skilled NHL player? Quick answers from most people will include Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, and Auston Matthews. Bigger fans of the NHL might also add Cale Makar and J.T. Miller to that list.
For the 2023 NHL All-Star Weekend Skills Competition, there are 8 events planned to determine which of these skilled skaters is the best of the best on Friday, February 2nd. And Bovada is right there with all the NHL All-Star odds to play with.
The best prospect to become the overall winner according to oddsmakers is McDavid at +700, followed closely by MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov, both at +800. Longer odds to win the whole skills show are Vancouver Canucks teammates Elias Petterson (+1000) and Miller (+1200).
NHL ALL-STAR SKILLS COMPETITION – INDIVIDUAL EVENTS
We’ve got plenty of action on some of the individual events as well.
Accuracy Shooting
For the Accuracy Shooting winner, the hometown crowd might propel the Leafs’ Auston Matthews to glory. He’s the favorite, along with a crowded group that includes David Pastrnak, Leon Draisaitl, and Nikita Kucherov. All four players are at +550, with longer odds set for snipers like Miller (+800) and Quinn Hughes (+900).
Fastest Skater
The Fastest Skater is always incredible to watch, and this year’s entrants will melt the ice again with their blazing speed. McDavid is the perennial favorite at +150, and hot on his heels are MacKinnon (+200) and Barzal (+275).
Hardest Shot
The Hardest Shot competition at the NHL All-Star Weekend is another fan favorite and the players always get into it for bragging rights. Cale Makar, the superstar young D-man for the Colorado Avalanche, is the odds-on favorite along with Elias Petterson at +300. If you want to take your, er, shot, with longer odds, you might want to look at Nikita Kucherov (+1200) all the way to Mathew Barzal (+2500). This is one of those events where timing is everything, so all it takes is any one of these sharpshooters to crank it up at just the right moment.
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NHL ALL-STAR DRAFT
Celebrity captains get to pick the lineups for Sunday’s big game, and they’ll kick off the event on Thursday, February 1st with a fun-filled and dramatic “draft” of their teams.
There are four captains for the event – Tate McRae, Will Arnett, Michael Bublé, and Justin Bieber. All Canadian celebs who’ve hit international stardom, and all big hockey fans too.
The celebs will pick their squads and it will be interesting to see where players end up. Guys who might have tried to demolish each other over the years will suddenly end up side-by-side, taking orders from Coach Biebs.
Justin and Co. are the reason there are no odds for which side will win the actual game yet – until they pick their respective players to fill out each roster, we’re all in suspense as to who’s playing who!
NHL ALL-STAR WEEKEND GAME
After the players have been drafted and the skills competition has wrapped up, it’s time to get down to business with the All-Star Game itself on Saturday, February 3rd. It used to be a wide-open affair – a decade ago, scores like 17-12 and 11-10 were the norm. In recent years, we’ve seen tighter games with single-digit final scores.
The friendly matchup might have a little edge to it, however. The MVP of the game takes home a cool $1 million bonus – so you can expect some real effort on top of the slick passes and soft bodychecks.
All-Star MVP Odds
Bovada’s got the latest odds on the NHL All-Star Game MVP too. This year’s top guns are a mix of the usual names plus some exciting newcomers.
Auston Matthews (+500) and Connor McDavid (+600) are at the top of the list again. Matthews’ teammate has moved up this year and he could take home the trophy at a tempting +750. For higher odds with highly skilled new faces, consider Makar at +1500 and Quinn Hughes (+2000). And if you’re into traditional stars, one of the game’s all-time greats, Sidney Crosby, offers big money at +2000.
Of course, a goalie can always steal the show during NHL All-Star Game Weekend. The Winnipeg Jets’ star netminder Connor Hellebuyck is 2nd in the league in wins this year and the current holder of the Vezina Trophy as last season’s top goalie. If you like him and think Bucky can make some spectacular saves in his 4th All-Star appearance, you might like him at +6000.
Overall, it’s going to be an exciting weekend with lots of hockey and the best of the best showing off their skills. Plenty of action for Bovada bettors too!