NHL Betting Picks for All-Star Game & Skills Competition

Many hockey fans are upset with the organization for their idiotic choice of Kid Rock as one of their halftime entertainers, but let’s put politics aside and concentrate on the annual NHL Betting action surrounding the All-Star Game. The 63rd edition will be the first ever to consist of four teams in a single elimination tournament. Each All-Star team is made up of the best players from the NHL’s four divisions. The Metropolitan Division will play the Atlantic Division in one contest and the Central and Pacific divisions will go at it in another. Let’s check the latest NHL betting odds while making some predictions.

NHL Betting Picks for All-Star Game & Skills Competition

Coaching in the 2018 @Honda #NHLAllStar Game in his own city and spending time with the League’s best will be a thrill for @TBLightning coach Jon Cooper. https://t.co/ro1jAZ9IEr

— NHL (@NHL) 26 de enero de 2018

• When: Sunday, January  28th
• Where: Amalie Arena, Tampa
• TV: NBC
• Radio: WGN 720 AM
• Live Streaming: NBCSports.com

Each game consists of two halves of ten minutes each. The primary uniform colors for the tournament will be black for the Central, blue for the Atlantic, white for the Pacific, and Gray for the Metropolitan. Additionally, the uniforms will have stars on the sleeves as was the case in the 1980’s. The four captains were selected by the NHL after the fan voting was completed. Steven Stamkos of the host Tampa Bay Lightning is captain of the Atlantic Division. Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals is captain of the Metropolitan Division. PK Subban of the Nashville Predators will captain the Central Division and Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers will captain the Pacific Division. Peter Laviolette of the Nashville Predators will coach the Central Division. Jon Cooper of the Tampa Bay Lightning will coach the Atlantic Division. Barry Trotz of the Washington Capitals will coach the Metropolitan and Gerard Gallant of the Vegas Golden Knights will coach the Pacific. The Atlantic Division is a +235 favorite, with the Central (+240), Metropolitan (+250) and Pacific (+250) right behind.

NHL All-Star 3-on-3 Tournament Winner

• Atlantic: +235
• Central: +240
• Metropolitan: +250
• Pacific: +250

Then there’s the second year of the 3-on-3 format, which a year ago, was highlighted by the Metropolitan Division topping the Pacific in the championship at the Staples Center in L.A. a year ago. Facing a 3-2 deficit at the intermission, Wayne Simmonds and Cam Atkinson scored only five seconds apart midway through the second half to lift the Metropolitan Division to the promised land. This isn’t only a for fun event, however, as the winning team gets to split a $1 million pot. With Sidney Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin and John Tavares and two of the top goaltenders around in Braden Holtby and Henrik Lundqvist, I like the Metropolitan Division.

NHL All-Star Game MVP Odds

• Steven Stamkos: +750
• Nikita Kucherov:+750
• Connor McDavid: +750
• Sidney Crosby: +800
• Patrick Kane: +850
• Alexander Ovechkin: +1000
• Johnny Gaudreau: +1000
• Nathan MacKinnon: +1100
• Auston Matthews: +1100
• John Tavares: +1200
• Tyler Seguin: +1200
• Brad Marchand: +1600
• Brent Burns: +1800
• Blake Wheeler: +1800
• Erik Karlsson: +2000
• PK Subban: +2000
• Claude Giroux: +2000
• Drew Doughty: +2000
• Kris Letang: +2500

When it comes to MVP betting, Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov and Connor McDavid are the +750 co-favorites, with Sidney Crosby (+800), Patrick Kane (+850), Alexander Ovechkin (+1000), Johnny Gaudreau (+1000), Nathan MacKinnon (+1100), Auston Matthews (+1100) and John Tavares (+1200) rounding out the 10 likeliest candidates to take home the MVP trophy. I’m going with Stamkos as my NHL Betting Pick simply because everything he does this season is turning into solid gold!