This article is part of our NHL Picks series.
Top NHL Futures Bets for the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs
The regular season is in the rear-view mirror, and now it is time for the best playoff season of any professional sport. I love college basketball, football, and most other sports, too. I'll watch anything. However, I always argue with people that hockey has the best athletes. Remember, most everybody can walk and run, but not everybody can skate, and that's a fact.
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We'll check out some futures bets, including awards, conference winners and more, getting you primed and ready for the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Let's get started.
Conn Smythe Trophy Betting Favorites 2024-25
- Connor Hellebuyck +1300
- Nathan MacKinnon +1600
- Connor McDavid +1700
- Cale Makar +1800
- Jack Eichel +1800
- Sebastian Aho (CAR) +2000
- Leon Draisaitl +2400
- Seth Jarvis +2500
- Nikita Kucherov +2600
- Alex Ovechkin +2700
- Aleksander Barkov +2800
- Andrei Vasilevskiy +3100
- Sergei Bobrovsky +3100
- Matthew Tkachuk +3200
- Jake Oettinger +3600
- Mark Stone +4000
- Auston Matthews +4000
There are 16 teams in the playoffs, and we were going to list out 16 players, but Matthews and Stone have the same odds, so that's why there are 17 players.
The top options are all elite players, obviously. Hellebucyk had an amazing season, but look for the Jets to get bitten by the Presidents' Trophy curse. Winnipeg was amazing early in the season, but it didn't look great at times in the spring. It seems unlikely that the Jets will maintain their regular-season momentum to win it all, so Hellebuyck is out. I could also see the Avalanche and the Oilers losing in the first round of the playoffs, as both teams do not have home-ice advantage, so MacKinnon, McDavid, Makar and Draisaitl are extremely risky plays.
My favorite betting options are in the mid-tier, as I can see Nikita Kucherov taking his team on a run, and the same goes for the NHL's new goal-scoring king, Alex Ovechkin. The Capitals gave chase for the Presidents' Trophy until the final week of the season, and we all know the Gr8 surpassed the Great One, Wayne Gretzky. This could be a magical season in D.C.
- Pick to Win Conn Smythe Trophy: Nikita Kucherov +2600
- Best Conn Smythe value pick: Alex Ovechkin +2700
- Best long-shot Conn Smythe pick: Mikko Rantanen +5000
Eastern Conference Finals Predictions and Picks 2024-25
- Carolina Hurricanes +280
- Florida Panthers +360
- Tampa Bay Lightning +460
- Washington Capitals +470
- Toronto Maple Leafs +650
- Ottawa Senators +1300
- New Jersey Devils +1600
- Montreal Canadiens +2700
As you probably surmised from my Conn Smythe Trophy picks above, I am rather bullish on the Lightning and Capitals in the Eastern Conference. In fact, I can see those teams playing for all of the marbles in the Eastern Conference Finals.
While the Hurricanes are the chalk in the Eastern Conference, I'm fading them because of their inability to consistently win on the road, and I don't trust Frederik Andersen in the playoffs. He can steam along, and then an injury always seems to crop up. The defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers shouldn't be written off, of course, but they do not even have home-ice advantage in the first round against the Lightning, and it's going to be an uphill climb for the repeat.
The Atlantic Division champion Maple Leafs have struggled to make it out of the first round for the better part of two decades. In fact, they've played into the second round just once in the past 21 years. However, they face the Senators in the first round, and the Maple Leafs are 4-0 all-time in playoff series against their provincial rivals. That certainly doesn't mean they're a lock for the Eastern Conference Finals or more, but a favorable first-round matchup, and no sign of the Bruins, means the playoffs could have a different look for the usually cursed Leafs.
- Pick to win Eastern Conference: Washington Capitals +470
- Best Eastern Conference value pick: Toronto Maple Leafs +650
Western Conference Finals Predictions and Picks 2024-25
- Colorado Avalanche +350
- Vegas Golden Knights +430
- Edmonton Oilers +460
- Winnipeg Jets +470
- Dallas Stars +550
- Los Angeles Kings +750
- Minnesota Wild +1700
- St. Louis Blues +2000
The disrespect is real. The Jets won the Presidents' Trophy with the most points in the NHL, but they have the fourth-shortest odds in the Western Conference to simply reach the Stanley Cup Finals. The oddsmakers are feeling the same way about them as I do, as I simply cannot trust Winnipeg. However, it would be super fun to see the "whiteout" go on for a while in these playoffs.
I know that Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood each had solid seasons for the Avalanche, but I don't like them as the chalk in the West. I could see the Avs getting bounced by the Stars, and old friend Mikko Rantanen, in the first round. The Stars have home-ice advantage, and they also have the superior netminder in Jake Oettinger.
In fact, I like the Stars to win the Western Conference. This is a pretty strong offensive team, with Rantanen, Matt Duchene, Roope Hintz, Wyatt Johnston and Jason Robertson, as well as a host of dangerous third- and fourth-line players capable of stepping up. The defense is solid, too, with Thomas Harley being a fabulous offensive rearguard
If you're going for a long-shot option, look to the Kings. This is going to sound crazy, but do the math from the regular season. For each series, add up the regular-season series winner. If you do that, the Kings will be your Stanley Cup champion over the Hurricanes. Seriously, that's how it works out.
- Pick to win Western Conference: Dallas Stars +550
- Best Western Conference value pick: Los Angeles Kings +750
Best Long-Shot NHL Playoff Bets for 2025
- Best long-shot Conn Smythe pick: Mikko Rantanen +5000
- Best Eastern Conference value pick: Toronto Maple Leafs +650
- Best Western Conference value pick: Los Angeles Kings +750
