We’re still some way to go in the 2022-23 NHL season, and one player is looking the most poised to take home the MVP honors. Edmonton Oilers Connor McDavid is the consensus favourite player to win the 2023 Hart Trophy. He has had a fantastic start to the season so far and going 2021-22 Hart Trophy winner Auston Matthews is a distant second, and could well land a second MVP award if he replicates his incredible form last season.
The MVP ladder includes a lot of known names, but which players have the best shot at winning the prestigious award? Here’s what the MVP ladder for the 2022-23 regular season looks like:
Connor McDavid (+125)
Jason Robertson (+500)
Auston Matthews (+1200)
Leon Draisaitl (+1400)
Kirill Kaprizov (+1500)
Jack Eichel (+1500)
Jack Hughes (+1500)
Nathan MacKinnon (+1500)
David Pastrnak (+2400)
Nikita Kucherov (+2500)
Sidney Crosby (+3000)
Matthew Tkachuk (+3000)
Cale Makar (+3500)
Elias Pettersson (+3500)
Mitchell Marner (+3500)
Mikko Rantanen (+4000)
Adam Fox (+4000)
Mika Zibanejad (+5000)
Artemi Panarin (+7500)
Jesper Bratt (+7500)
Steven Stamkos (+10000)
Kyle Connor (+10000)
Evgeni Malkin (+10000)
Igor Sheshterkin (+10000)
Alex Ovechkin (+10000)
Aleksander Barkov (+10000)
Jonathan Huberdeau (+12000)
Sam Reinhart (+12000)
Andrei Svechnikov (+12000)
Brad Marchand (+12000)
Mathew Barzal (+12000)
Mark Scheifele (+12000)
Roman Josi (+12000)
John Tavares (+12000)
Patrik Laine (+12000)
Chris Kreider (+12000)
Connor Hellebuyck (+12000)
Patrick Kane (+12000)
Filip Forsberg (+12000)
Brady Tkachuk (+12000)
Andrei Vasilevskiy (+12000)
Sebastian Aho (+12000)
Anze Kopitar (+12000)
Blake Wheeler (+20000)
Nazem Kadri (+20000)
Teuvo Teravainen (+20000)
Tage Thompson (+20000)
Shea Theodore (+20000)
Trevor Zegras (+20000)
Nicklas Backstrom (+20000)
Evander Kane (+20000)
Roope Hintz (+20000)
Nico Hischier (+20000)
Alex Pietrangelo (+20000)
Bo Horvat (+20000)
Alex Debrincat (+20000)
William Nylander (+20000)
Claude Giroux (+20000)
Brock Boeser (+20000)
Brayden Point (+20000)
Aaron Ekblad (+20000)
Patrice Bergeron (+20000)
Johnny Gaudreau (+20000)
Mark Stone (+20000)
Jake Guentzel (+20000)
Dougie Hamilton (+20000)
Victor Hedman (+20000)
From FanDuel’s NHL betting odds as of December 1, 2022.
A Breakdown of the 2022-23 MVP Favorites
Connor McDavid
Centers have won five of the last 10 Hart Trophy awards and Connor McDavid will be hoping to become the latest to land an MVP honors. He has been leading the MVP race since the offseason and has shown no sign of slowing down.
McDavid is arguably the NHL’s most explosive offensive player, and the 2015 NHL Draft first-overall pick has yet to throw in the towel. He leads the league in points (47) and assists (26), and his 21 goals so far this season is the second most scored.
ESPN projects McDavid to hit 69 goals and 85 assists for a total of 154 points in 80 games, which should be more than enough to land him the MVP honors.
Auston Matthews
The 2021-22 Hart Trophy winner will be hoping to land back-to-back honors, despite the Toronto Maple Leafs not being in top form at the start of the season. Toronto appears to be picking up again though with seven wins in their last ten games, including a five-game winning streak. The Buds are 2nd in the Atlantic Division and have the third-best record in the Eastern Conference with 15 wins, five losses, and six overtime losses.
Matthews isn’t having a bad season either, although his current form is a shadow of his MVP-winning season. The 24-year-old centre has 12 goals and 16 assists for 28 points in 26 games. ESPN projects Matthews to finish the season with 38 goals and 50 assists for 88 points, compared to the 60 goals and 40 assists he registered last season.
The Buds star man will hope to become the first player since Alexander Ovechkin (2008, 2009) to repeat as Hart Trophy winner. However, given his current form, his chances have continued to dip.
Jason Robertson (+500)
Jason Robertson leapfrogged Matthews to take the 2nd spot, and deservedly so. The Dallas Stars key man has turned it up a notch this season after a stellar 2021-22 campaign. Robertson tops the goal-scoring rankings with 23 goals and has provided 18 assists so far this season.
ESPN projects he could hit 75 goals and 59 assists for a combined 166 points at the end of the season, more points than his closest contenders for the MVP honors. He has seven goals and three assists in his last five games. The 23-year-old left-winger extended his point streak to 18 games on Sunday with a goal and an assist to his name.