Oilers' McDavid now the odds-on favourite to score first-ever 'Rocket' Richard Trophy
Connor McDavid has been filling the net to start the season.
He’s filling betting slips too, it turns out.
The Edmonton Oilers captain has paced all scorers through the first month of the NHL campaign with 11 goals through his opening 10 games, and the top of the charts isn’t the only place he’s vaulted to the top of.
McDavid is now the betting favourite to win the Maurice ‘Rocket’ Richard Trophy, “presented to the player finishing the regular season as the League’s goal-scoring leader,” according to Stake.com.
It’s the only major award that’s eluded him through the opening seven season of his career.
McDavid is +285 to change that, meaning a $100 bet would return a $385 payout.
The 25-year-old leads Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs, at +320, and Kirill Kaprizov of the Minnesota Wild at +1,100. Oilers teammate Leon Draisaitl sits fourth at +1,250.
McDavid, who’s career high in goals is 44 set in 2021-22, has two Hart Memorial Trophies, given “to the player adjudged to be the most valuable to his team,” on his mantle from efforts in 2017 and 2021, as well as Ted Lindsay Awards as “most outstanding player” from 2017, 2018, and 2021.
The two-time NHL All-Star team member also has Art Ross Trophies as the league’s leading scorer in 2017, 2018, 2021, and 2022. He has an ESPY Award won last July, too.
He’s still yet to capture a Maurice Richard, however.
Since entering the league in 2015-16, McDavid has seen Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals capture the Richard four times (2016, 2018, 2019, 2020), and Matthews won back-to-back honours in 2021 and 2022.
David Pastrnak of the Boston Bruins shared the award with Ovechkin in 2020, and Sidney Crosby netted one in 2017.
McDavid started the season with the third-best odds of earning his first ever Richard nod at +750 behind Matthews and Draisaitl.
He currently leads defenceman Erik Karlsson of the San Jose Sharks by one goal for top spot. Five others, including Kaprizov and Andrei Svechnikov of the Carolina Hurricanes, sit at eight goals.
Matthews, who entered the 2022-23 season as the likely winner to three-peat, has scored four goals in 11 games.
McDavid, who also leads the NHL with 22 points (11 goals, 11 assists), remains the odds-on favourite to capture the Hart Memorial Trophy, given “to the player adjudged to be the most valuable to his team,” at a +120 line.
The mark is improved from a preseason number of +275.
Matthews is second at +900, and Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche ranks third at +1,100.
Maurice ‘Rocket’ Richard odds
Hereās a look at the Maurice ‘Rocket’ Richard odds, according to Stake:
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