The goaltending position in the NHL is one of the most important on the ice. It is also one of the hardest to project as goalies go through periods of ups and downs during any given season.
NHL goalies can often come out of nowhere and have an unbelievable season. Take St. Louis’s Jordan Binnington who took over in January of 2019 and led the Blues to the Stanley Cup.
The volatility of the position makes the betting market for the Vezina Trophy one of the more interesting NHL bets. Seven different net-minders have won the award over the last seven seasons. The last back- to-back winner was Martin Brodeur.
Keep that in mind as we take a look at the 2021 Vezina Trophy odds and picks.
The Favorites
Typically, Vezina Trophy winners hail from winning teams. Last year’s winner Connor Hellebuyck and the Winnipeg Jets made the postseason with a 37-28-6 record. The Jets are currently third in the North Division with a record of 20-11-2. They are in position to make the postseason again, but there hasn’t been a Vezina repeat winner in so long that Hellebuyck is listed at a longer +1200.
The leading candidate to win it all is Tampa Bay goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy, who won the award in 2018-19. The Lightning goaltender leads the NHL in wins (21) and save percentage (.933) and is second in goals against average (1.83).
Being at or near the top in each of those three categories gives a net-minder the best chance at winning the award. Throw in a team – Tampa Bay – with the best record in the NHL and you have the perfect recipe for a Vezina winner.
On Vasilevskiy’s tail is Vegas goalie Marc-Andre Fleury (+300). The Vegas Golden Knights lead the West Division at 22-7-1 and Fleury ranks in the top three in each of the major goalie statistical categories.
Fleury is third in wins with 16, third in goals against at 1.92, and second in save percentage at .931.
In the Mix
Hellebuyck is in the mix at +1200, but he is only in the top 5 in wins. He’s tied for fourth place with 15 wins. Frederik Andersen of the Toronto Maple Leafs, is also worth noting. The Maples Leafs had the NHL’s best record for most of the beginning of the season. Andersen (+2500) is also only a top 5 goaltender in terms of wins.
Best Bet
While this race appears to be Vasilevskiy’s based on his stats and the performance of the Lightning thus far this season, Colorado’s Philipp Grubauer offers more value at +500.
Colorado trails Vegas by just two points (45 to 43) in the West Division and Grubauer has the stats of a Vezina winner. He leads all goaltenders in goals against average (1.74), is second in wins (18), and fourth in save percentage (.929).
The Avalanche have one of the more prolific offenses in the NHL. They are second behind Tampa Bay averaging 3.42 goals per game. With Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen leading the way, the Avs could go deep in the postseason. If Grubauer continues to stay at or near the top in those key statistical categories, he has a great chance of winning this year’s Vezina Trophy.
2021 Vezina Trophy Odds
You can bet on this NHL futures market at BetOnline.
Andrei Vasilevskiy +100
Marc-Andre Fleury +300
Philipp Grubauer +500
Semyon Varlamov +750
Connor Hellebuyck +1200
Vitreous Vanacek +1800
Sergei Bobrovsky +2000
Frederick Andersen +2500
Ilya Sorokin +2500
