The 2019 NHL Awards are just one week away. And with the show taking place in Vegas, what do the oddsmakers have to say about Dallas Stars goaltender Ben Bishop and his chances of winning the 2019 Vezina Trophy?
It’s been four years since a Dallas Stars player last won an NHL Award.
On April 11, 2015, Stars captain Jamie Benn capped off an incredible 10-game stretch to end the 2014-15 season with a four-point night (including a hat trick) against the Nashville Predators in game 82. The effort pushed Benn to 20 points in his final ten games and capped his season total at 35 goals and 87 points.
Those numbers were good enough to make Benn the highest points-getter of all skaters in the 2014-15 regular season. As a result, he won the first (and only) Art Ross Trophy in Dallas Stars franchise history.
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And while it’s only been four years since a Stars player hoisted a trophy at the NHL Awards show in Vegas, it’s been much longer since a Star won an award based on voting. After all, Benn only won the Art Ross because he was atop the NHL rankings in points at the end of the regular season.
But when you scan the awards that are voted on by outside judges (whether it be NHL general managers or members of the PHWA) in search of a Dallas Stars player, you have to go back to the 2002-03 season when Jere Lehtinen won the Selke Trophy. While Marty Turco won the NHL Foundation Player Award in 2005-06, the Selke Trophy is the most recent award won by a Stars player that is still given out annually.
So, it’s been a little while since a member of the Stars was last on the stage in Vegas to accept a vote-based award. But in one week, that drought could end.
It all depends on whether or not Dallas goaltender Ben Bishop wins the 2019 Vezina Trophy.
SenShot
Bishop was named a finalist for the Vezina on April 20, 2019 alongside Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay Lightning) and Robin Lehner (New York Islanders). The trophy is awarded annually to “the goalie that is best at his position” and is voted on by the 31 general managers at the end of every regular season. After the voting, the top three vote-getters are named as finalists.
In other words, while we know the three finalists are Bishop, Vasilevskiy, and Lehner, the winner was selected over two months.
The question on the minds of Stars fans right now, though, is whether or not he has a good shot at becoming the first Dallas goaltender to ever win the award. And when you take a look at the numbers, all signs point to the 32-year-old having relatively favorable odds.
Bishop finished the season with the highest save percentage (.934) and lowest goals against average (1.98) among NHL goaltenders with at least 45 games played. He won 27 games, posting a shutout in seven of them. The goalie posted career-high numbers in save percentage, goals against average, and shutouts and provided the Stars with a confident and sturdy backbone as they advanced to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2016.
When comparing Bishop, Vasilevskiy, and Lehner, there are certain standout factors that could put each one ahead in the race. But in reality, there’s no telling which one will take the trophy home on June 19.
With the show taking place in Vegas, though, it’s only fitting to look to the oddsmakers when trying to figure out which goalie has a potential upper hand.
And according to Bovada, it looks as though Ben Bishop might be in for a tough race.
Bovada released the betting odds for each NHL Award back in May and has continued updating them as the show gets closer. As of yesterday, here is a look at the 2019 Vezina Trophy odds.
Andrei Vasilevskiy: -333
Ben Bishop: +250
Robin Lehner: +1800
If you’ve never dealt with odds before, here’s a quick rundown:
Vasilevskiy is the favorite to win the 2019 Vezina Trophy. If you put $100 down on Vasilevskiy and he ended up winning the trophy, you would only make $30.03. Meanwhile, $100 on Bishop to win could net you an extra $250. Finally, putting $100 on Lehner could reel in $1800 if the New York goalie won the trophy.
Now of course, these are only betting odds set by an oddsmaker. They don’t resemble anything concrete, but instead are set after comparing this year’s results to the recent winners of the trophy.
Even so, it’s an interesting number and ranking to keep in mind as the NHL Awards show draws closer.