May is finally here, and there are all kinds of sports bets you can make on this exciting sports weekend.
The NHL and NBA Playoffs continue to roll along, the UFC has a big PPV event, the Giro d’Italia gets underway, plenty of soccer games, and the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby all take place on the first weekend of May.
Per our weekly tradition, our cross-sports parlay card will bring you a valuable payout with picks ranked by our level of confidence. All odds are courtesy of Bovada.
Parlay Picks Of The Day
| Pick | Odds |
|---|---|
| Chelsea | +120 |
| Henry Cejudo | -110 |
| Florida Panthers | +110 |
| Edmonton Oilers | -125 |
Pick 1: Chelsea (+120) vs. Bournemouth
Saturday, May 6th at 10:00 a.m. ET
While it has been a challenging season to date for Chelsea, and admittedly one where they will ultimately slot in well behind where most pundits and fans thought they’d be, the Blues have shown some recent signs of life on the pitch and with sports betting sites.
On Saturday, they’re getting some great value on the road when they take on bottom-feeders Bournemouth. And while the Blues are firmly mid-table and should be safe from relegation discussions, the Cherries might still have some work to do.
But it won’t be easy against a talented Chelsea lineup featuring a unique blend of speed, skill, and youth.
Frank Lampard has given all kinds of new opportunity to his young talent and, even though the results haven’t been consistent just yet, the process is clearly there for an improved run of form. We think that will show on Saturday morning at the Vitality Stadium.
Bournemouth will host this match a tad banged-up and that could lead to openings for a deep Chelsea side. The Cherries are slated to be without Marcus Tavernier, Ryan Fredericks, and Junior Stanislas.
They’ll go with a slow and plodding back-four to line their defense, but the Chelsea pace should be too much to handle.
Mudryk cooking 🔥 That’s the tweet 💫 pic.twitter.com/XnCUs5fgzp
— Enzo Fofana CFC (@EnzoFofanaCFC) April 27, 2023
For the Blues, their strength in this matchup lies with their attacking prowess. Mikhail Mudryk and Kai Havertz have formed an impressive tandem up top, and the skill, pace, and aerial ability of Havertz should be able to find some goals against a porous Bournemouth back-line.
While both sides are out of European contention, the urgency is on Chelsea and Frank Lampard to show a consistently positive run of form before the conclusion of the regular season. The Blues have a big talent edge, beat Bournemouth back in December, and at a juicy +120 price at soccer betting sites, have to be considered a solid wager to find a way on Saturday morning.
Pick 2: Henry Cejudo (-110) over Aljamain Sterling
Saturday, May 6th at 11:45 p.m. ET
The main event of this Saturday’s UFC 288 card, has all the makings of an instant classic. Former two-division champion Henry Cejudo returns to the octagon following a lengthy layoff, to take on the current champ Aljamain Sterling.
While Cejudo ‘retired’ and left the title behind in the competitive bantamweight division, he’s eager to get his belt back, and again push for multi-division supremacy. It won’t be easy against the very talented Sterling. You also have to wonder what role ‘ring rust’ plays in this title bout.
The thinking here is that Cejudo is a proud fighter who is not past his prime. He wouldn’t be coming back if he wasn’t at the top of his game. The time spent away from the octagon to clear his head, likely has done him some favors. Cejudo looks energized, refreshed, and should be a real handful for Sterling come Saturday night.
Cejudo is an excellent wrestler and when this fight goes to the ground, the former champion should be all over the current champ. While Sterling boasts an unorthodox style both standing and, on the ground, the sheer upper body strength of Cejudo, combined with his technique, should find him in favorable spots.
[Henry’s] had enough pie, but he hasn’t had enough humble pie.”
Cejudo’s reaction to Sterling’s diss 😂 #UFC288 (via @dc_mma) pic.twitter.com/0wznKY6FM3
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) May 4, 2023
Sterling hasn’t inspired much confidence from bettors and MMA fans alike. He was clearly losing to Petr Yan back in 2021, before winning the title due to an illegal knee from Yan.
Sterling then followed that up with a very controversial split decision win over Yan a year later. And last year, Sterling did defeat a badly banged-up TJ Dillashaw. Once again, taking advantage of a favorable situation.
Cejudo is quick on his feet and is one of the best wrestlers and grapplers the sport has ever seen. He enters with an impressive 93% takedown defense and should be able to withstand the advances of Sterling throughout this contest.
While Sterling knows he cannot wrestle with Cejudo, the shoots and takedown attempts from Cejudo should overwhelm the lanky Sterling.
Expect Cejudo to keep Sterling at close range and gradually wear down the current champ to regain his title belt. At a generous -110 price with UFC betting sites, look for Henry Cejudo to win the title and to win us some money.
Two-Team Parlay Odds
If you prefer to just go with a two-team Saturday parlay card, Chelsea (+120) and Henry Cejudo (-110) has parlay odds of +311. This means you would win $311 dollars for every $100 dollars wagered.
Pick 3: Florida Panthers (+110) over Toronto Maple Leafs
Sunday, May 7th at 6:30 p.m. ET
Hockey fans and bettors saw first-hand Thursday night the power of a keen forecheck and a physical, battle-tested group as the Florida Panthers took a stunning 2-0 series lead over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Toronto is likely still congratulating themselves for winning their first NHL Playoff series in 19 years last week, and have not matched the physicality or intensity here in Round 2.
Florida head coach Paul Maurice continues to push all the right buttons. Despite his group likely not possessing the high-end talent that the Leafs boast of in their top six, the Panthers have proven to be a physical squad that can give the Toronto defense fits with their forecheck.
Florida also boasts a severe edge right now between the pipes, as Sergei Bobrovsky has saved nearly five goals above expected saves this series. He enters Game 3 sporting a .947 save percentage.
By contrast, Toronto’s Ilya Samsonov is mired at an .877 save percentage. It hasn’t been good enough and the Panthers have exposed Toronto’s flaws.
Ilya Samsonov, asked about the play of his counterpart, Sergei Bobrovsky: I don’t give a f*ck.
Says he’s only concerned/focused on his own game.
— David Alter (@dalter) May 5, 2023
Making matters worse for the Leafs, is that the extra day of rest between Game 2 and 3 will surely favor Florida, who hasn’t been home in over a week. The have played five games in nine nights.
Impressively, the Panthers havee won them all, but a bit of a rest would be appreciated for this group that plays such a heavy and physical style.
Toronto also enters with some lineup and injury concerns, as star 20-year-old rookie Matthew Knies was forced out of Game 2 after a scary-looking tussle with Florida’s Sam Bennett.
Knies has added all kinds of skill and speed to the Toronto top-six and losing another scorer won’t help solve Toronto’s woes.
With Leafs’ bench boss Sheldon Keefe losing the ability to line-match and not have last change, it’ll make things all the more difficult for the Toronto skill players to break through against Florida’s pesky players such as the aforementioned Bennett, Matthew Tkachuk, and Sasha Barkov.
The Panthers kind of plodded along in the regular season, but this has always been a team built for post-season hockey. Florida is showcasing that right now as they’re up 2-0 on the heavily favored Leafs.
In a crucial Game 3, there’s no reason to suggest Florida won’t keep chugging along in what has proven to be a one-sided series thus far. Take the Panthers and their +110 odds at NHL betting sites.
Three-Team Parlay Odds
Taking the first three parlay bets of this weekend parlay card, Chelsea (+120), Henry Cejudo (-110), the Florida Panthers (+110), returns exciting +764 parlay odds. This means you would win $764 dollars for every $100 dollars wagered.
Pick 4: Edmonton Oilers (-125) over Vegas Golden Knights
Saturday, May 6th at 7:00 p.m. ET
With the XFL on hiatus until next week’s title game, we’ll go back with one more NHL Playoff hockey encounter this weekend.
It’s a crucial Game 2 between Edmonton and the Vegas Golden Knights, and we like the Oilers in this one. Let’s not forget that Edmonton was one of the favorites at Stanley Cup betting sites heading into this series. One loss doesn’t change that.
In Game 1, the Knights prevailed, but just barely. A narrow 5-4 victory for the underdog Knights granted them the series lead, but we expect the Oilers to reverse the narrative here in a pivotal second game of the series.
Edmonton controlled the majority of chances, shots on goal, and scoring attempts on Wednesday night in Game 1. The Knights really had no answer for the speed and skill of the Oilers’ top-six spearheaded by Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid.
While some say the Oilers are too top-heavy, there remains a lot of doubt over who on Vegas can slow this tandem down.
Vegas is also a heavily penalized team and has a tendency to be erratic and undisciplined when chasing the puck. They did a lot of that in Game 1. The Oilers’ zone-entries and skill should be able to wear down a plodding Vegas’ bottom-six forward group and their D corps in this Game 2 matchup.
Leon Draisaitl is in elite company 🤩 pic.twitter.com/F00tDdExbY
— ESPN (@espn) May 4, 2023
While Vegas plays a heavy style, the skill and speed of Edmonton should win out. They’re better in every aspect of the game, including between the pipes. Also, their powerplay continues to be simply lethal.
Expect the Oilers to control the pace of play, which should result in a barrage of opportunities. Edmonton is the better and more talented group. Look for a dominant showing from their top players to propel them to a Game 2 victory Saturday night on the Vegas Strip!
Four-Team Parlay Odds
And there you have it folks! Four exciting wagers spanning Saturday and Sunday to add a little excitement to your betting needs this weekend.
If you do choose to wager on all four legs of this weekend parlay card, then you will receive parlay odds of +1455. This means that you would win $1,455 dollars for every $100 dollars wagered.
