2024 NHL All-Star Skills Competition odds, picks and predictions
The NHL All-Star Skills Competition takes center stage Friday night in Toronto at Scotiabank Arena during All-Star Weekend. The event begins at 7 p.m. ET (ESPN, Sportsnet). Below, we analyze FanDuel Sportsbook's lines around the NHL All-Star Skills Competitionodds, and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.
We'll focus on the 3 most entertaining events -- Accuracy Shooting, Fastest Skater and Hardest Shot -- and they're easily the most popular betting markets, too. These 3 events have been around since the inception of the NHL All-Star Skills Competition in 1990 and are the contests that the fans seem to enjoy the most.
New York Islanders F Brock Nelson won the Accuracy Shooting competition last season by hitting 4 of 4 targets in a mere 12.419 seconds. Carolina Hurricanes RW Andrei Svechnikov took home the Fastest Skater trophy with a time of 13.699 seconds a year ago, and the Hardest Shot was won by Vancouver Canucks C Elias Pettersson, who recorded a 103.2 mph blast.
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NHL Skills Competition picks and predictions
FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last update at 5:48 a.m. ET.
Shooting Accuracy Winner
While the event takes place in Toronto, I'm not feeling either of the 2 hometown participants, C Auston Matthews (+700) and RW William Nylander (+800) of the Maple Leafs, as the winner here. The lights will be too bright, the pressure will be on and rarely does the hometown guy come through.
In fact, we generally have a surprise winner in this event. Nelson won last season, and Carolina C Sebastian Aho hit 4 of 4 in 2022 in just 10.937 mph. Carolina D Jaccob Slavin notched a winning time of 9.505 seconds in St. Louis in 2020. None of these players were considered the favorite, or anything close to it when they won.
Friday, we'll roll the dice on a couple of long shots. Colorado Avalanche C NATHAN MACKINNON (+800) and Vancouver C J.T. MILLER (+850) are quite attractive with rather long odds. If you select both of them, obviously you'll lose one end. But if one wins, you'll be well ahead.
Fastest Skater Winner
This competition has been a torch-bearing ceremony of sorts. Hall of Famer Mike Gartner was the original winner in 1990, and he picked up wins in 1993 and '96.
Peter Bondra and Scott Niedermayer each won it twice -- in the late 1990's and early 2000's. In 2015, while with the Tampa Bay Lightning, current Avs LW Jonathan Drouin set the NHL on its ear with a 13.103-second winning time in 2015. The time still stands as the record.
Edmonton Oilers C Connor McDavid ripped off 3 straight wins, starting in 2017, and is the only player in NHL history to win in back-to-back Fastest Skater competitions, let alone 3 in a row. That's what made Islanders C Mathew Barzal's upset win in 2020 in St. Louis all the more surprising, as he upended McDavid and the rest of the field.
After a year off due to COVID, St. Louis Blues F Jordan Kyrou won in 2022, and Svechnikov picked up the trophy a year ago. Neither will compete Friday, although McDavid and Barzal are in the mix.
Like the Accuracy Shooting challenge, there is no value betting the chalk as McDavid (+120) and Barzal (+220) sit atop the odds board.
Again, I'm not going with the hometown guy in Nylander (+1000), and I don't see Vancouver D Quinn Hughes (+1000) winning.
I like Colorado D CALE MAKAR (+400). He is young -- 25 years old -- and ready to earn his spot as the NHL's fastest man.
Hardest Shot Winner
Al Iafrate and Al MacInnis used to dominate this competition, combining to win 10 hardest shot titles from 1990-2003.
Like the Fastest Skater, this has been a torch-passing situation. Zdeno Chara won 5 straight events from 2007-'12, and he was bumped off by Shea Weber, who won 3 in a row from 2015-17.
The last few years have seen some turnovers, but the defending champ is back, and he is the pick. Vancouver's ELIAS PETTERSSON (+175) recorded a 103.2 mph speed last season, and he is the chalk.
In this event, I love the favorite and expect him to win again.
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NHL head-to-head picks and predictions
Fastest Skater
There is also a head-to-head market in the various skills competition, and one player simply needs to beat the other.
WILLIAM NYLANDER (-113) is a solid play vs. Hughes (-113).
Accuracy Shooting
BACK NATHAN MACKINNON (+100) at even-money to get the job done against Matthews (-128).
In a battle between Edmonton teammates, BET LEON DRAISAITL (-108) as the slight underdog in a head-to-head matchup against McDavid (-118). After all, Draisaitl is the NHL's active leader with an 18.12% shooting percentage since his career started in 2014-'15. McDavid is 15.44% since his career began in 2015-'16.
