NHL Regular Season: Fade The Sharks for Profit

The San Jose Sharks are in the race for last place, and FanDuel Sportsbook NHL odds have the Sharks as the favorite (-500) to finish the 2024-25 NHL Regular Season with the fewest points. 

Last week, the Sharks traded their leading scorer, Mikael Granlund, and veteran defenseman Cody Ceci. The Sharks also have a pool of pending UFAs, so GM Mike Grier could completely gut the roster before the March 7 trade deadline. 

Betting the Sharks to finish last doesn’t carry much value. Fading this team through the remainder of the season can turn you a profit if you get a little creative.

Grier Isn’t Negotiating

Jan Rutta, Nico Sturm, Vitek Vanecek, and Alexander Georgiev are all pending UFAs. Mikael Granlund and Cody Ceci were also, and GM Mike Grier traded them off. 

Grier is not negotiating with any of these UFAs, so the strategy is clear—sell, sell, sell. 

If the Sharks can unload these players for draft picks and/or young talent, I expect the team to crater through the season’s final months. 

Flat Starts to Get Flatter

You likely won’t find much value in betting the Sharks’ opponents on the moneyline.

The Sharks haven’t been favored once in their previous ten games, and their moneyline odds in some games were staggering. The Sharks closed as +322 underdogs against the Nashville Predators on January 21 and +261 dogs against the Florida Panthers on January 25.

San Jose is, however, a poor first-period team.

The Sharks score an average of 0.71 goals in the first period, good for the seventh-worst average in the NHL. As the team sells assets and drifts toward the season finale, I’d expect the team to start games flat. First-period team total unders will remain in play for the Sharks. 

Blowouts Coming

The Sharks ATS record is 34-23-0. Not bad, but San Jose has lost six out of their last ten games by two goals or more. 

I expect more blowouts as the season progresses. In December, the Sharks traded their number one goalie, Mackenzie Blackwood, to the Colorado Avalanche. Current Sharks goaltenders Alexander Georgiev and Vitek Vanicek are pending UFAs. 

With top prospect Yaroslav Askarov emerging, Grier may trade one or both veteran goalies. 

Get Creative Fading the Sharks During the NHL Regular Season

The San Jose Sharks have a bright future. According to The Athletic expert Scott Wheeler, they have the top prospect pool in the NHL. Players like Will Smith, Macklin Celebrini, and Yaroslav Askarov are part of a core of young talent that will get San Jose back to the playoffs.

Not this year. The race to the bottom of the NHL Regular Season standings is on. Get creative and fade the Sharks on the puckline and under their first-period goal total to salvage some profit.