2021 Conn Smythe: Nathan MacKinnon is current favorite to win originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The 2021 NHL regular season is near completion, and with the postseason set to start Saturday, May 15, that also means the race for the Conn Smythe Trophy begins. With the Chicago Blackhawks not competing in the postseason, the Conn Smythe won’t be going to anyone on the team. However, here are the latest odds for who will take home the Conn Smythe Trophy.
What is the Conn Smythe Trophy?
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The Conn Smythe Trophy is awarded to the player who is determined to be most valuable to their team during the playoffs. That player is usually a member of the team that wins the Stanley Cup. The award was established in 1965 and has been handed out to 47 different players. The Professional Hockey Writers Association selects the winner after the completion of the Stanley Cup Finals.
Who is the favorite to win the 2021 Conn Smythe Trophy?
With the playoffs not having yet started, it’s hard to determine who will be taking home the Conn Smythe. However, the odds are already out for who will be awarded the trophy. It comes to no shock that the higher the odds for the team to win the Stanley Cup, the higher the odds for their players to take home the MVP of the playoffs.
Here are the latest odds for the winner of the Conn Smythe trophy, presented by PointsBet.
- Nathan MacKinnon +800
- Auston Matthews +1100
- Mark Stone +1400
- Marc-Andre Fleury +1500
- Mitch Marner +1700
- Sidney Crosby +2000
- Mikko Rantanen +2000
- Andrei Vasilevskiy +2000
- Sebastian Aho +2200
- Connor McDavid +2200
- Max Pacioretty +2200
Who has won the Conn Smythe Trophy in the past?
As mentioned, the trophy is typically given to a player on the winning team. However, there have been five times where a member of the losing team has been awarded the trophy. It has not happened since 2003, when goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere of the Anaheim Ducks was awarded the trophy despite the Ducks losing to the New Jersey Devils.
There also have been six players who have won the award multiple times. The most recent is Sidney Crosby, who won the award in back-to-back years in 2016 and 2017. Crosby is among five players who have won the award twice, while goaltender Patrick Roy is the only player to win the trophy three times.
Here are the most recent winners of the Conn Smythe Trophy.
- 2020: Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
- 2019: Ryan O’Reilly, St. Louis Blues
- 2018: Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
- 2017: Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
- 2016: Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
Editor's note: All odds are provided by our partner, PointsBet. PointsBet is our Official Sports Betting Partner and we may receive compensation if you place a bet on PointsBet for the first time after clicking our links.
Bryan Murphy contributed to this story.
