David Pastrnak Vs. Connor McDavid: Bet On Bruins Star Could Pay Off
From 22-1 to +150 is quite the jump
David Pastrnak has to be loving 2023 so far, and bettors who bought in on the Boston Bruins winger could be on their way to a big profit.
The B’s forward scored two more goals Monday in Boston’s matinee win over the pesky Ottawa Senators. The pair of tallies give Pastrnak 41 on the season, and he’s now just one goal behind Connor McDavid for the league lead.
The race has gotten tight not just on the stat sheet but on the betting board, too. DraftKings Sportsbook has dramatically tightened the market for the Rocket Richard Trophy as the NHL’s top goal scorer.
Top regular-season goal-scorer
Connor McDavid -145
David Pastrnak +150
Tage Thompson +1600
Mikko Rantanen +2000
It’s essentially a two-horse race at this point. As Pastrnak tries to chase down McDavid, there’s a decent gap between them and the next closest snipers with Thompson and Rantanen both checking in at 36 goals.
TSN on Tuesday did an interesting comparison for McDavid and Pastrnak, pointing out how the Edmonton Oilers superstar has gone cold lately. McDavid hasn’t scored in his last four games, which might as well be four months with the way he finds the back of the net.
McDavid had a ridiculous 32 goals through his first 38 games as the calendar flipped. Since the start of the year, though, he has “only” 10 goals in 19 games. Pastrnak, on the other hand, has been on fire, scoring 16 goals in 20 games since ’23 began, including the pair Monday — and that’s including a bit of a slump recently.
From a betting perspective, those holding preseason tickets on Pastrnak have to be excited. The Bruins winger was 22-1 to lead the league in goals at the beginning of the season, accounting for just 7.5% of the tickets and 6.7% of the handle at BetMGM. That 22-1 opening number put Pastrnak in the neighborhood of Kyle Connor and Alex DeBrincat. Those two have scored 45 goals combined so far this season, so yeah, the preseason Pastrnak looks better by the day.
As for those chasing a Pastrnak winner now, good luck. It’s certainly possible he usurps McDavid down the stretch. But you’re not just getting the wrong side of the number (by far). There’s also reason to believe McDavid still holds off Pastrnak. That’s in large part because he’s Connor freaking McDavid and has 119 goals dating back to the start of the 2020 season.
Another important consideration is the schedule and standings. While the Bruins have a game in hand on the Oilers, Edmonton’s postseason fate is far from settled while the league-leading Bruins can effectively coast to the finish line. While Edmonton will need McDavid to carry the team in a fight for a spot in the tournament, the Bruins should rest players — Pastrnak included — to be ready for what they hope is a deep playoff run.
That it’s even this close at this point is a testament to Pastrnak, who has taken yet another step this season in his development. His peers this week recognized the 26-year-old as the best winger in the league. So, while the deck might still be stacked against him in this race, it wouldn’t be shocking to see it happen the way things have gone for Pastrnak this season.
