The 2023-24 NHL season is in the rearview mirror after the Florida Panthers held on and avoided letting the Edmonton Oilers come back from down 3-0 to win the Stanley Cup finals.
Now, we can look ahead to the 2024-25 season and the futures odds for which teams are the favorites to win the trophy.
Below, we’ll examine some of the top teams and early data we’ve received from notable NHL betting sites regarding ticket percentages, handle percentages, and their biggest liabilities.
Team analysis and breakdown
The top four teams, odds-wise, to win the next Stanley Cup at BetMGM are the Florida Panthers, Edmonton Oilers, Colorado Avalanche, and Dallas Stars. Below, we’ll look at these four teams and where they stand in Stanley Cup odds just one day after the conclusion of the 2023-24 season.
Florida Panthers
The Panthers were in the Stanley Cup finals a year ago before losing to the Vegas Golden Knights, but they came back this season and won. Of course, they had a 3-0 lead and almost blew it, but they didn’t.
Key acquisitions at the deadline this past season — Vladimir Tarasenko and Kyle Okposo — are free agents, so retaining them, especially Tarasenko, could be key. Okposo provides strong veteran leadership, but he may retire.
For Florida, it will be all about addressing the team’s power play woes. The Panthers play a more man-heavy defense, which isn’t common in today’s hockey, so keeping the gang together while improving the power play are two major offseason goals.
Edmonton Oilers
Edmonton is a team that’ll always be in contention if it has Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. The Oilers could improve a bit depth-wise, but with these two and now the experience of making it to the Stanley Cup finals and rallying from down 0-3 to force a Game 7, they’ll be battle-tested and could be ready to pull a Panthers and come back next year to win it all.
Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche went into the postseason without Gabriel Landeskog as he was recovering from a major knee injury, but if he’s back in the fold next year, he, Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon, and the rest of the Avalanche will look to avenge their loss in the second round of the playoffs.
When we watch this team, you can’t help but notice its speed. With that, the team’s captain returning, and one of the best defensemen in the league in Makar, the Avalanche could be a strong contender to represent the West.
Dallas Stars
The Stars were arguably a better team than the Oilers on paper and depth-wise, but McDavid went nuclear, scoring three goals, notching seven assists, and posting 10 points. He had a point in all but one of the six games.
The Stars still have Jamie Benn under contract next season, their young goaltender Jack Ottenger will be back in the net, Tyler Seguin will likely be there for years to come, and Jason Robertson is one of the best young players in the game.
Notable futures odds data from BetMGM and Fanatics
BetMGM
In addition to the Panthers, Oilers, and Avalanche being inside the top four odds-wise, they’re also the top three teams at BetMGM in terms of ticket percentage, meaning they’re the teams attracting the most wagers.
- Panthers 21.5%
- Oilers 20.1%
- Avalanche 8.7%
As for the most money wagered, the Oilers are at 30.6%, the Panthers are at 12.1%, and the Golden Knights, with odds of +1200, are at 19.4%.
That means those teams are BetMGM’s biggest early liability. The Oilers’ 30.6% share would be a sizable loss for the online sportsbook should Edmonton pull it off next season. Considering the Oilers are not in the top three in ticket percentage, this indicates that there have been several larger wagers already placed on the Oilers to win the next Stanley Cup.
Fanatics
We’ve also received some early data from Fanatics, which list the following odds:
- Oilers: +900
- Panthers: +900
- Dallas: +1000
- Rangers: +1000
- Avalanche: +1100
Additionally, we have some early odds on the next winner of the Hart Trophy:
- Connor McDavid: +185
- Nathan MacKinnon: +525
- Auston Matthews: +1000
- Jack Hughes: +1100
- David Pastrnak: +1900