This article is part of our NHL Picks series.
NHL Picks: Expert NHL Picks for NHL All-Star Competition
The National Hockey League All-Star break is here, but that doesn't mean we won't have a slew of opportunities to make some wagers. Personally, I don't really care for the tournament-style 3-on-3 hockey. While fun to play, as my men's league has 3-on-3 overtime, and it's a blast, it isn't as fun to watch professionals with amazing speed. I think it's a bit unfair to the goaltenders, quite frankly, as they don't get to show off their skills as much since they're constantly being bombarded.
Anyway, I've always been a fan of the NHL Skills Competition, and it should be exciting this season taking part at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. While it's gotten a little silly with some gimmicky events in St. Louis, and especially Las Vegas, it is still a lot of fun. The action begins at 7 p.m. ET at ESPN/ESPN+. Let's get started!
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NHL Skills Competition Best Bets
Accuracy Shooting Winner
The Accuracy Shooting Competition dates back to 1990, when Ray Bourque brought home the trophy for the Wales Conference by hitting four of seven shots. These days, the winner is measured on time, not shots made. And 4/7 simply won't do these days. New York Islanders forward Brock Nelson hit 4/4 targets last season, winning in 12.419 seconds. He is the second straight player to hit 4/4, as Carolina's Sebastian Aho also accomplished the feat in 10.937 seconds.
The record setter was Daniel Sedin of the Vancouver Canucks back in 2011 in Raleigh, representing Team Staal, when the NHL did the short-lived, and lame, fantasy-style All-Star draft. Sedin disposed of the targets in 7.3 seconds, hitting 4/4.
This is a contest where the chalk isn't always the best bet. In fact, we've seen some unlikely participants come through and take home the hardware in recent seasons. I think there is too much pressure on Toronto's Auston Matthews (+700 at FanDuel), and likewise for Toronto's William Nylander (+800 at FanDuel), so I'm eliminating them both. And I don't like the chalk, either, as Leon Draisaitl, David Pastrnak, Connor McDavid and Nikita Kucherov (+600 at FanDuel) are each listed as the co-favorites. Draisaitl is tempting, as he is the active leader in the NHL with an 18.12% shooting percentage.
I'll take a chance on Vancouver's J.T. Miller, as he seems to stand out to me. He has a 14.81% shooting percentage in his career, and is sneaky accurate with some rather long odds. If you're a little more conservative, you can't be blamed taking Draisaitl.
- J.T. Miller +850 (at FanDuel)
NHL Fastest Skater Winner
Looking to the Fastest Skater, this is always a popular event. This also dates back to 1990, when Hall of Famer Mike Gartner, representing the New York Rangers, won with a speed of 28.1 mph. In 1992, the NHL changed to time (seconds), and we have generally seen the same times. Gartner posted a 13.510-second time in 1993 when he won, and he had a 13.386 time in 1996 for his third and final victory in the event. He sorta handed the torch to Peter Bondra and Scott Niedermayer in the late 1990s, and both of those players won two times. A handful of players hovered around the high 13s and low 14s from 1999 to 2011 before Carl Hagelin ripped off a 13.218 second time in 2012, opening up a new era.
Edmonton's Connor McDavid locked it down from 2017-19, becoming the event's only three-time winner, while doing so in consecutive seasons, too. That might not be a record we see broken. New York Islanders forward Mathew Barzal stunned McDavid with a blazing 13.175-second time in 2020 in St. Louis. McDavid (+120) is once again the chalk, with Barzal (+220) not far behind. They're the only previous winners in the event. I'll roll the dice on Colorado's Cale Makar (+400) to get the job done and take home his first crown.
- Cale Makar (+400 at FanDuel)
- Hardest Shot Winner
The hardest shot winner also dates back to 1990, and Al Iafrate and Al MacInnis used to run this category every season. Seriously, it wasn't fun, although it was amazing seeing if he could ratchet things up and take his shot to a higher level. Iafrate reached 105.2 mph in 1993, and that stood as the record until the behemoth Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara broke the record with a 105.4 mph shot in 2009. Chara broke his own record in 2011 (105.9), and again in 2012, and his 108.8 mph holds the all-time record. Chara won five years in a row, which snapped the record of Al MacInnis, who won four straight seasons from 1997-2000.
Shea Weber won three years in a row from 2015-18, and he won again in St. Louis in 2020, to join the five-win club. Vancouver's Elias Pettersson racked up a 103.2 mph shot to win it last season, and he is back to defend his crown. Pettersson is looking to become the first back-to-back winner since Weber won three in a row from 2015-17.
- Elias Pettersson (+185 at FanDuel)
NHL Picks Tonight
All-Stars Skills Competition Winning Picks
- J.T. Miller (+850), Canucks
, Accuracy Shooting - Cale Makar (+400), Avalanche
, Fastest Skater - Elias Pettersson (+185), Canucks , Hardest Shot
