The 2024-25 NHL Hart Trophy odds show a familiar face: Connor McDavid is the most likely MVP once again. Several exciting players will be ready to put on a show on the ice this season, but can anyone steal the coveted Hart Memorial Trophy from the favorite?
Continue reading to check out the latest prices, my full analysis, and NHL MVP predictions for this season!
2024-25 NHL MVP Betting Odds
The following Hart Trophy betting odds are courtesy of Bovada:
| PLAYER | ODDS |
|---|---|
| Connor McDavid (EDM) | +150 |
| Nathan MacKinnon (COL) | +500 |
| Auston Matthews (TOR) | +950 |
| Jack Hughes (NJD) | +1000 |
| David Pastrnak (BOS) | +2000 |
| Kirill Kaprizov (MIN) | +2000 |
| Leon Draisaitl (EDM) | +2000 |
| Nikita Kucherov (TBL) | +2000 |
| Cale Makar (COL) | +2500 |
The Edmonton Oilers’ Connor McDavid (+150) will enter the regular season as the betting favorite to win the Hart Memorial Trophy. The price means that NHL betting sites have McDavid with an implied probability of 40% to win the MVP!
The latest 2024-25 NHL MVP odds suggest that he and MacKinnon are the only players with a reasonable shot at winning. Auston Matthews (+950), who is coming off a memorable 69-goal season, has the third-shortest price. Currently, Matthews has a 9.5% chance to win — considerably less than McDavid.
You can find up-to-date odds to win NHL MVP at Bovada by navigating to All Sports > Hockey > NHL Awards > Hart Memorial Trophy 2024/25.
NHL Hart Memorial Trophy Betting Favorites
The NHL betting markets for MVP highlight two players as the clear favorites. Also, I believe you have to include Matthews in the discussion after his incredible campaign for the Maple Leafs a season ago.
Let’s analyze these top three favorites to flush out details for our NHL MVP picks:
Connor McDavid (+150)
The Oilers’ McDavid is coming off his first trip to the Stanley Cup Final in 2023-24. As the favorites to win the Stanley Cup, McDavid is expected to get his team back in the championship series.
Currently, the Oilers are +750 to win the Cup after coming a game shy a season ago. While they didn’t win this past June, McDavid became the first player since J.S. Giguere in 2003 to win the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoffs MVP on the losing team.
CONNOR MCDAVID SCORES HIS FIRST CAREER STANLEY CUP FINAL GOAL 😤
📺 ABC/ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/XK5P24h9Lu
— ESPN (@espn) June 16, 2024
McDavid went on an unbelievable run to take the Oilers to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. He scored eight goals and 34 assists for a jaw-dropping 42 points in 25 games! This was after the 27-year-old McDavid recorded 32 goals and 100 assists in the regular season.
The native of Richmond Hill, ON, is in for another significant season as a member of the Oilers. As the most dynamic player in the NHL, McDavid is must-watch material. He has captured the Hart Memorial Trophy on three different occasions in 2016-17, 2020-21, and 2022-23.
Can he win his fourth this season? After what McDavid accomplished this past spring, and the Oilers’ chances this year, he has to be the top favorite to win MVP in 2024-25.
Nathan MacKinnon (+500)
Nathan MacKinnon put on quite the display for the Colorado Avalanche last season. He scored 51 goals and 89 assists for a total of 140 points! MacKinnon’s 140 points cleared McDavid by eight points.
McDavid couldn’t match MacKinnon’s incredible scoring tear, so he didn’t have enough votes to capture the Hart Trophy. MacKinnon finished with 137 of the 194 first-place votes.
While his numbers weren’t as impressive as the MacKinnon, McDavid still managed to receive one first-place vote. The Lightning’s Nikita Kucherov ultimately finished second behind MacKinnon, with 50 first-place votes.
We still think about this Nathan MacKinnon goal…😱💨 pic.twitter.com/EhcGVQBYB3
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) August 29, 2024
Can MacKinnon duplicate his numbers from a year ago? It’s likely going to be difficult for the pride of Halifax. He went from 88 points, 111 points, and then 140 points in the 2023-24 campaign. I don’t foresee MacKinnon sustaining this ascent.
He will probably need another 140-point season or thereabout to win another Hart Trophy. However, I anticipate a 120 to 130-point campaign this season. MacKinnon got to 140 points thanks to a 35-home game point streak, coming close to Wayne Gretzky’s record 40-game run in 1988-89.
I don’t see this happening again, so MacKinnon’s numbers should come down some. Despite another thrilling campaign, don’t expect to be the first player to repeat as the MVP winner since Alexander Ovechkin in 2008-09.
Auston Matthews (+950)
The Maple Leafs suffered another bitter exit in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but it was a career season for new captain Auston Matthews. The dynamic goal scorer buried 69 goals and 38 assists for a total of 107 points!
Matthews fell one goal short of becoming only the ninth player to score 70 goals in a season. He didn’t have the assists to compete with McDavid, MacKinnon, and Kucherov in the MVP voting, though. Matthews could have been a better facilitator if the team’s strategy required it.
However, the Maple Leafs were too busy feeding Matthews’ hunger for goal scoring that he didn’t have much of a chance. With as accurate and quick release that Matthews has, it wasn’t a bad strategy to keep finding him on the ice.
AUSTON MATTHEWS!! pic.twitter.com/GoqGvdC2dD
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) January 19, 2024
Entering 2024-25 as the captain of the Maple Leafs, Matthews will have a greater responsibility bestowed on him this season. I don’t expect it to suddenly make him a threat to McDavid or MacKinnon for the Hart Trophy, however.
He was too busy focusing on getting to 70 goals instead of just playing his game toward the end of the season. With that year behind him, look for Matthews’ goals to drop off closer to 60 for this campaign in 2024-25. It will be a fantastic year for Matthews, but not enough for the Hart!
NHL MVP Sleepers
Before getting into our top NHL MVP bet, let’s take a moment to analyze the best sleepers for the Hart Memorial Trophy. There are a couple of players who should fit into your NHL betting strategy for MVP in 2024-25:
Kirill Kaprizov (+2000)
One of the most underrated players in the NHL has to be Minnesota Wild left-winger Kirill Kaprizov. He may not have as much of a brand name as some of the others on this list, but Kaprizov is a playmaker well worth watching.
Last season, the winger finished with 46 goals and 50 assists for 96 points. He had a career eight game winning goals for the Wild in 2023-24. The 27-year-old will have to raise his production this season, but at +2000, I am willing to take a chance that he can.
Cale Makar (+2500)
The last defenseman to win the Hart Trophy was the Blues’ Chris Pronger from the 1999-00 season. One defenseman who has a solid argument to join the lore of Pronger is the Avalanche’s Cale Makar.
In 2023-24, he participated in 77 games with 21 goals and 69 assists. He does so much more than what is on a stat sheet, though. Makar’s effort can’t be completely quantified on paper.
The 25-year-old does a lot of the little things that help the Avalanche win games. Of course, the stats will have to follow to win the NHL MVP award, and I could see Makar having a career year.
We've officially entered the top 5! The 5th most requested #NHLBreakaway highlight is…
🧊 Cale Makar – The Completion Cup: Midway through the overtime frame, Makar skates the puck behind the net and turns on a dime outwitting the defender to shelf it for a jaw-dropping goal.… pic.twitter.com/p9oHh7J18s
— NHL Breakaway (@NHLBreakaway) October 4, 2024
Remember that he’s putting up these incredible numbers as a defenseman! Any type of improvement statistically, and I think you must put him in the running for the Hart Trophy.
2024-25 NHL MVP Predictions and Betting Pick
While the other top contenders will have strong seasons, I am most confident in McDavid consistently producing from his effort last year. MacKinnon should witness some regression, but McDavid may match or even surpass his numbers from the 2023-24 season.
That is likely all McDavid will have to accomplish to win the Hart Memorial Trophy. If he can stay the course, the favorite will win the fourth regular season MVP award of his career.
While last year’s playoff run is not supposed to be used as a barometer for Hart Trophy voting the next year, I have a suspicion that some voters may recall that run. Nevertheless, McDavid won’t need that extra push to be the first player across the finish line. His results this season will speak for themselves.
McDavid defies what looks impossible on the ice again this season, as No. 97 clears to win the Hart Memorial Trophy and NHL MVP!
Where to Bet on the 2024-25 NHL MVP Odds?
The best NHL MVP odds can be found at Bovada for the 2024-25 season! There are a number of reputable sports betting sites that offer bets on the NHL MVP, but Bovada is our top pick.
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