Hockey, basketball, football, and even tennis are all playing major contests right now, which makes this weekend another great weekend for online sports betting at the BetMGM online sportsbook.
Tennis
Australian Open
Tournament Continues Through Jan. 28ย |ย ESPN Plus
Novak Djokovic has already won more grand slam tournament titles than any other menโs player in history. He can pass Margaret Court this month and set a new all-time record if he wins his 25th title at the Australian Open.ย
Nowhere is a Djokovic win more likely than the Australian Open, where the Serb hasnโt lost a single match since 2018. Of the 24 major championships Djokovic has earned, 10 have come from Melbourne.
At BetMGM, Djokovic was +130 to lift the trophy in Thursdayโs tennis odds.ย Alcaraz, the 20-year-old Spanish phenom who beat Djokovic in the 2023 Wimbledon finale, is +250.ย
Djokovic and Alcaraz are the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds, respectively, so they wouldnโt be able to meet before the championship round on Jan. 28. For now, Djokovic is scheduled to play his third-round match against Argentine Tomas Etcheverry early Friday.ย
Naturally, Djokovic is a big -2000 favorite to advance, but the 10-time champion has looked unusually vulnerable in his opening matches, already dropping one set each to both qualifier Dino Priลพmiฤ and hometown favorite Alexei Popyrin.ย
In the fourth round, Djokovic could play either Frenchman Adrian Mannarino or American Ben Shelton. The latter played a heated match against Djokovic at last yearโs U.S. Open.
NHL
Avalanche at Flyers
Saturday, Jan. 20ย |ย 1 p.m. ETย |ย NHL Network
Philadelphia fans might be bummed about the end of the Eaglesโ season, but thereโs good news on Broad Street. The Flyers (24-14-6) have jumped Carolina in the standings, zooming up to second in the Metropolitan standings and fourth in the East.ย ย
But the Flyers will get a true playoff readiness test this week when they host back-to-back games against Western contenders. After the Stars play in Philly on Thursday, the Flyers will play a Saturday matinee against Nathan MacKinnon and the Colorado Avalanche.
The Flyers are expected to be underdogs in both games in BetMGMโs NHL odds market. They were +115 ahead of the Dallas puck drop on Thursday.ย
MacKinnon is tied for the league lead in points with 72, while Philadelphiaโs Samuel Ersson is fifth in the NHL with a 2.33 GAA.
NFL
Divisional Round: Chiefs at Bills
Sunday, Jan. 21ย |ย 6:30 p.m. ETย |ย CBS
The Chiefs and Bills have played four times in the last three seasons, and many NFL fans may be surprised to learn that the Bills hold a 3-1 advantage in those games. That includes this season, where Buffalo won in Kansas City 20-17 back in Week 14.ย
The problem for Bills fans is that the first contest that springs to mind is the infamous 13 seconds divisional playoff game, when the Chiefs vanquished Buffalo in overtime despite the Billsโ go-ahead touchdown with only 13 seconds left in regulation.ย
That outcome from January 2022 will serve as major subtext underneath this weekendโs divisional-round rematch as Buffalo prepares to host Kansas City in the next playoff edition of Patrick Mahomes vs. Josh Allen. Right now at BetMGM, the Bills are a rich 2.5-point NFL odds favorite with the vig juiced to -120.ย
Both the Chiefs and Bills have faced headwinds this season. Buffalo lost a series of major defensive contributors in October, while the Chiefs have struggled with drops and other miscues from their wide receiver unit.ย
One other thing to keep in mind: Kansas City hasnโt played a road AFC playoff game since 2015, when Mahomes was a sophomore at Texas Tech. Homefield advantage is a major reason why both the Bills and Ravens are above the Chiefs in the 2024 Super Bowl odds table.
