Morning Coffee: Bedard the obvious Calder Trophy favourite ahead of NHL debut

Hockey fans, the long wait is finally over.

The NHL will drop the puck on the 2023-24 regular season with a triple-header that culminates with the defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights beginning their title defence against the Seattle Kraken.

The Golden Knights, which are looking to become the first Western Conference team to repeat as Stanley Cup champions since the Detroit Red Wings won back-to-back in 1997 and 1998, will enter the season as the seventh choice to win it all at +1300 at FanDuel.

The Colorado Avalanche are the favourite to win the Stanley Cup at +850 at FanDuel.

The Tampa Bay Lightning host the Nashville Predators in the first game of the season.

This matchup would have pit two of the co-favourites to win the Vezina Trophy at FanDuel head-to-head in Juuse Saros and Andrei Vasilevskiy, but Vasilevskiy will miss the first two months of the season due to injury.

Regardless, Tampa Bay is a -166 favourite for tonight’s game with Jonas Johansson set to start in goal.

Meanwhile, the spotlight will be on the 2023 first-overall pick Connor Bedard when he makes his highly anticipated NHL debut for the Chicago Blackhawks against Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Bedard is the obvious favourite to win the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s Rookie of the Year.

Twelve different No. 1 overall picks scored a goal in their NHL debut. Bedard will look to join that list at +200 to score a goal tonight in Pittsburgh.

This is the Morning Coffee for Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023.

Bedard the obvious Calder Trophy favourite ahead of NHL debut

Connor Bedard was born on July 17, 2005. That’s exactly 13 days before the Penguins selected Crosby with the first-overall pick in the 2005 NHL Draft.

Tonight, Bedard will make his NHL debut opposite Crosby when the Blackhawks visit Pittsburgh.

It’s a new era for Chicago, which will be without Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane in a season opener for the first time since 2006.

While expectations have been tempered for the Blackhawks this season, they couldn’t be higher for the first-overall pick.

Bedard is -175 to win the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s Rookie of the Year at FanDuel. That number represents a 63.6 per cent implied probability. No other rookie has shorter than 7-to-1 odds to win the Calder.

In fact, FanDuel has a special futures market up with Bedard versus The Field for the Calder Trophy.

Bedard is -124 to win the Calder versus The Field at even-money in that market.

Bedard will look to follow Kane, Artemi Panarin, and Ed Belfour as the fourth Calder Trophy in Blackhawks franchise history.

In terms of goal and point projections, FanDuel has set Bedard’s over/under at 31.5 goals and 68.5 points.

Auston Matthews is the last No. 1 overall pick to reach 60 points in his rookie season. Matthews recorded 69 points in 82 games in 2016-17.

Nico Hischier is the last No. 1 overall pick to reach 50 points in their rookie season. Hischier finished with 52 points in 82 games in 2017-18.

What will Bedard have in store for his NHL debut?

Bedard anytime goal scorer is +200 at FanDuel.

A $10 bet on Bedard to score will pay $20 if he lights the lamp in his NHL debut.

Bedard to score the first goal of the game is 16-to-1.

Bedard to score two or more goals is 12-to-1. Bedard to score a hat trick in his NHL debut is 60-to-1.

Chicago is a +198 ML underdog for tonight’s opener.

A Same Game Parlay with Bedard to score and the Blackhawks to win could be found at +470 at FanDuel.

While I’m not rushing to lock in a FanDuel Best Bet for tonight’s NHL action, I can’t wait to see the 2023 first-overall pick make his highly anticipated debut.

All eyes will be on Bedard tonight in Pittsburgh.

I just might sprinkle on Bedard to score in his debut tonight at FanDuel as the NHL season begins.