Monday is a sports fan’s fantasy as the only day of the year each of the four major American sports leagues are all in action, also known as the Sports Equinox.
The NHL and NBA get things started at 7 p.m. ET, with large slates of games that continue through the night. Then MLB gets underway at 8:03 ET, when the Arizona Diamondbacks host the Texas Rangers in Game 3 of the World Series. And the NFL finally kicks off at 8:15 ET, with Monday Night Football between the Las Vegas Raiders and Detroit Lions.
To celebrate, I put together a four-leg parlay for bettors to tail at their own risk. But with so many more games to choose from, the options are limitless.
NHL: Tampa Bay Lightning moneyline (-145)
AP Photo/Chris O’Meara
Starting with the sport I follow the least, my goal was to play this as safe as possible and roll with a team that was favored to win on its home ice. That’s the case for the Lightning, who are 4-2-2 with two straight wins by a combined 9-0 score and hosting the 2-5-2 Seattle Kraken playing their fourth straight game on the road.
NBA: Dallas Mavericks -1.5 (-105)
Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports
I’ll just throw this out there now, this is a risky play as of the time I’m writing this. Kyrie Irving is listed as questionable with a left foot sprain, and while I’d favor the Mavericks over the 0-3 Memphis Grizzlies regardless, I’ll obviously feel a lot better about the pick if Irving plays.
MLB: Over 9 runs (-120)
Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
When you get a matchup between teams as unpredictable as the Rangers and D-Backs, rolling with the total feels like the safer bet. Especially when these teams are 2-0 to the over through two games, hitting double-digit points in each. That’s before we get to a pitching matchup between starters who were shaky in their last games.
NFL: Detroit Lions -7 (-110)
Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin
In a nutshell, the Lions are good and the Las Vegas Raiders aren’t. But bigger than that, the Lions are home and coming off a beatdown in their last game, so they should be fired up to get back on track. Oh, and did I mention the Raiders aren’t good?
Parlay odds: +1054 (BetMGM)
Now, that’s a pretty good number right there. A $10 bet at those odds would win $115.46. Let’s hope it hits.
