Auston Matthews Favored to Be Top Goalscorer in 2021 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs
- Auston Matthews is favored to be the top goalscorer in the 2021 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs
- The top four goalscorers in last year’s postseason were from the top two teams
- Read below to see the top-20 favorites along with our betting pick
Odds have been released on which NHL player will lead the 2021 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs in goalscoring. The 16-team postseason is set to get underway on Saturday, May 15th with the first-round series between the Boston Bruins and Washington Capitals.
Maple Leafs’ forward Auston Matthews is a slight favorite to be the top goalscorer after scoring at a ridiculous pace during the regular season. Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche isn’t far behind after putting on a clinic in the 2020 postseason.
We layout the odds for the top-20 favorites and provide our best bet.
2021 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Top Goalscorer Odds
| Player (Team) | Odds at DraftKings |
|---|---|
| Auston Matthews (Maple Leafs) | +600 |
| Nathan MacKinnon (Avalanche) | +650 |
| Mikko Rantanen (Avalanche) | +1000 |
| David Pastrnak (Bruins) | +1150 |
| Connor McDavid (Oilers) | +1400 |
| Gabriel Landeskog (Avalanche) | +1500 |
| Alex Ovechkin (Capitals) | +1500 |
| Max Pacioretty (Golden Knights) | +1500 |
| Sebastian Aho (Hurricanes) | +1700 |
| Nikita Kucherov (Lightning) | +1700 |
| Mitch Marner (Leafs) | +1700 |
| Brad Marchand (Bruins) | +2000 |
| Brayden Point (Lightning) | +2000 |
| Mark Stone (Golden Knights) | +2000 |
| John Tavares (Maple Leafs) | +2000 |
| Patrice Bergeron (Bruins) | +2300 |
| Leon Draisaitl (Oilers) | +2300 |
| Jake Guentzel (Penguins) | +2400 |
| Ondrej Palat (Lightning) | +2400 |
| Sidney Crosby (Penguins) | +2500 |
| Steven Stamkos (Lightning) | +2500 |
Odds as of May. 13
Brayden Point led the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs in goalscoring with 14 goals in 23 contests. Over the last 10 years, the only time a player from a non-Stanley Cup Final team led the postseason in goals was San Jose’s Logan Couture in 2019. Betting a player on a Stanley Cup contender is usually a safe play.
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Matthews, MacKinnon On Top
Toronto Maple Leafs’ superstar Auston Matthews is favored to lead the 2021 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs in goalscoring after a sensational regular season. Matthews is the runaway favorite in the Rocket Richard odds after potting 41 goals in just 51 games. Even if the Leafs don’t make the Cup Final, Matthews could do enough damage in a few rounds to lock down top goalscorer.
Auston Matthews 🤝 40 goals#LeafsForever pic.twitter.com/NsBDxWgsh9
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) May 7, 2021
Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon is right behind Matthews in the odds after finishing in the top-10 with nine goals in 15 games during the 2020 postseason. It’s very reasonable to think that if MacKinnon’s Avs had defeated the Stars in the Western Conference Finals, MacKinnon would’ve led the postseason in goals.
Between Matthews and MacKinnon, I’d give the edge to the Avs superstar because his team is a bit more complete. The Leafs are only listed at -215 to beat the Habs and haven’t made it out of the first round since 2013. But there’s some concern with MacKinnon as well, as the Avalanche forward is reportedly dealing with a minor lower-body injury.
Kucherov Listed as Longshot
Tampa Bay Lightning superstar Nikita Kucherov is listed as a +1700 longshot to lead the 2021 NHL Playoffs in goalscoring after missing the entire regular season due to injury. The Russian sensation is expected to play Game 1 against Florida after leading the entire 2020 playoffs in scoring (34 points). Kucherov only scored seven goals last postseason, however, and could be rusty against Florida.
If you think Tampa Bay has the talent to repeat as Cup champions, there are better longshots to consider instead of a potentially rusty Kucherov. Point is available at +2000 after finishing top-20 in regular-season goalscoring, while Stamkos at +2500 is also enticing. The Bolts’ captain has missed over a month with a lower-body injury, but is expected to play Game 1 and has scored 24 goals in 71 career postseason contests.
NHL Playoffs Top Goalscorer Best Bet
The Colorado Avalanche are listed as the favorites in the Stanley Cup odds, and it’s hard to see them not going far after coming so close last year. They’ve added Devon Toews, Brandon Saad, and Andre Burakovsky into the mix among others and scored 60 goals in just 15 postseason contests last summer.
Another goal?
WHY NOT#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/oNsYbCDJQE
— x – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) May 13, 2021
MacKinnon is a solid bet to lead the postseason in points, but when it comes to goals, his linemate Mikko Rantanen (+1000) has great value in top goalscorer odds. The talented Finnish winger has scored around 30 goals in each of the last full three seasons and will be playing with MacKinnon at both even-strength and on the power play.
The Avalanche are likely to finish the regular season as the NHL’s highest-scoring team, and their leading goalscorer is a great bet to lead the NHL Playoffs as the top goalscorer.
Best Bet: Mikko Rantanen (Avalanche) +1000
Brady is the lead NHL and College Football editor at Sports Betting Dime, where he specializes in betting odds and data-driven analysis. Brady has over 10 years experience working in sports media, with work published by outlets such as ESPN, CBS Sports, Yahoo! Sports and Fox Sports.
