The Conn Smythe Trophy is given out each year to the most valuable player from the NHL playoffs. It is decided through a vote by members of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association at the conclusion of the final game of the Stanley Cup Final.
The Conn Smythe betting market can be an excellent way to find extra value on certain teams to win it all. If we are confident a certain player will almost always win if his team does in fact win the Stanley Cup, it can become more valuable to bet the Conn Smythe number than the team.
Some teams have too many logical MVP candidates, which makes this strategy ineffective.
What has to be weighed is what percentage of the time we believe a team might win the cup without that particular player winning the trophy, and then compare that player’s Conn Smythe number to the price of oddsmakers’ cup outright numbers for that team.