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Vegas Back to Being Sizable Favorites in 2020 Pacific Division Title Odds at +110

Brady Trettenero

by Brady Trettenero in NHL Hockey

Updated Apr 9, 2020 · 11:17 AM PDT

Marc-Andre Fleury of the Vegas Golden Knights
2020 NHL All-Star Marc-Andre Fleury and the Vegas Golden Knights are back to being sizeable favorites to win the Pacific Division. Photo by Michael Miller (Wikimedia Commons).
  • Vegas is back to being sizable favorites (+110) to win the Pacific Division
  • The Golden Knights were as long as +220 in late November
  • Should you bet on Vegas taking home the division title?

The Golden Knights are back to being fairly large favorites in the Pacific Division odds after seeing their odds plummet as low as +220 in late November.

The Oilers are trending in the wrong direction, while the Coyotes have underwhelmed since acquiring Taylor Hall.

Is Vegas the best bet for a division title this year or is there better value elsewhere?

2019-20 NHL Pacific Division Odds

Team Odds
Vegas Golden Knights +100
Arizona Coyotes +275
Calgary Flames +500
Vancouver Canucks +500
Edmonton Oilers +1400
San Jose Sharks +3000
Anaheim Ducks +20000
Los Angeles Kings +50000

Odds taken Dec. 30

Vegas (21-15-6) has a two-point lead over the second-place Coyotes and Canucks in the Pacific Division.

Vegas Back on Top 

The Golden Knights are once again sizable favorites to win the Pacific Division after a solid month of December in which they posted an 8-4-2 record. Vegas started the season as -120 favorites, but saw their odds drop as low as +220 in late November.

The Golden Knights got off to an uneven start this year but appear to have found their grove. Max Pacioretty, Mark Stone, William Karlsson and Reilly Smith have all hit the 30-point mark and the team ranks seventh in the NHL in Corsi (52.51 %) and ninth in High-Danger Corsi (52.55%).

Vegas is rock-solid at every position, but there are four division teams all within four points of them in the standings. Is now the time to bet on Vegas or should you look elsewhere for value?

Oilers and Coyotes Trending Down

Both the Oilers and Coyotes are going through a rough patch right now. Edmonton has lost eight of its last 10 games, while Arizona is only 2-4 since acquiring superstar forward Taylor Hall from the New Jersey Devils.

Arizona’s odds only dropped from +225 (December 16) to +275, but Edmonton’s odds have plummeted from +900 to +1400. The Oilers aren’t getting much contributions behind Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, while Arizona is still a bottom-10 team when it comes to scoring goals.

Edmonton’s issues are the same issues that have led to them missing the playoffs in recent years, which makes them a risky bet to win the division. Hall should start to gel with the Coyotes soon, but they still don’t have the complete type of offense that Vegas has.

Canucks Have Intriguing Value

Oddsmakers don’t seem to be big on the Canucks despite the fact Vancouver has won five straight games. The Canucks only trail Vegas by two points with two games in hand yet they are still listed at +500 odds.

Vancouver is getting solid supporting scoring from Jake Virtanen, Tanner Pearson and Adam Gaudette among others, while Jacob Markstrom is proving he can steal games in the crease. Quinn Hughes is blossoming on the blueline and Elias Pettersson is delivering another excellent season.

Despite the intriguing value, I still see Vancouver a tier-below Vegas. The Canucks’ 2-7-1 all-time record against the Golden Knights is proof that they still aren’t quite on Vegas’ level. It’s also concerning that the Canucks rank in the bottom half of the league when it comes to Corsi (49.32 CF%).

Betting Advice

Edmonton’s odds might be the worst we see them all season, but I don’t think the team has enough behind their two superstars to lead them to a division title this year.

The Canucks are an intriguing bet at +500, but the best bet is still Vegas. The Golden Knights are well-balanced in every area and don’t possess some of the weaknesses the teams below them are exhibiting.

It’s a tight race in the Pacific right now, but that is likely to change in the second half of the season. Vegas still has plus-odds, so get on them now before things start to open up in the second half.

Pick: Vegas Golden Knights (+100)

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