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2025 NHL Stanley Cup Predictions and Futures Odds

by Ryan Cobbett - 3/12/2025

NHL Stanley Cup odds and predictions Connor Hellebuyck Winnipeg Jets

With the trade deadline behind us and just a few weeks remaining in the regular season, time is running out for you to take advantage of some juiced odds on the future Stanley Cup winning team. After an exciting deadline that featured some big-time moves, we have seen odds change a lot from where they were just a week ago. Florida and Dallas made two big moves and are now the top two favorites to win it all, while the current top two teams in the league in Washington and Winnipeg are outside the Top Five in terms of best odds. Sportsbooks are favoring the Western Conference, as four of the top five teams, and five of the seven teams mentioned here, hail from the Western Conference.

The Top Five teams, in order, include the Florida Panthers, Dallas Stars, Edmonton Oilers, Colorado Avalanche, and the Vegas Golden Knights. Let’s go team by team and determine who is a real contender for the Stanley Cup and who is a pretender.

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Florida Panthers +500

The Florida Panthers are currently the odds-on favorite to defend their reign and win the Stanley Cup again this year. The Panthers made some moves before the deadline to bolster their roster with Matthew Tkachuk on the LTIR. Their two notable moves were blueliner Seth Jones and former rival Brad Marchand. Though Marchand is currently out, he will give the Panthers even more leadership and championship experience. Sam Reinhart continues to be one of the best goal scorers in the league while Aleksander Barkov is the most complete player on the team. Sergei Bobrovsky has the Panthers inside the Top 10 in GA/G, and the Panthers special team’s unit ranks 12th in the league in both PP% and PK%. However, they may benefit from recency bias. Their +40-goal differential is just the third best mark in the conference, and they are just two points ahead of Toronto for the top spot in the Atlantic. Right now, they are projected to take on an incredibly hot Ottawa team. If Toronto were to pass them, that would be a first-round matchup with Andrei Vasilevskiy and the Tampa Bay Lightning. Don’t get me wrong, this is a roster that could make a run, but there are better teams, and Marchand and Tkachuk may not be 100% come playoff time.

My Pick: Pretender

Dallas Stars +550

The Dallas Stars were one of the deepest teams in the league last year, and they may be even better this season. Tyler Seguin going on the LTIR helped open the door for the Stars to be major buyers ahead of the trade deadline. The team already acquired Mikael Granlund and Cody Ceci to add important depth, but then they made a huge splash and traded for (and extended) Mikko Rantanen. Rantanen brings this Stars team to another level, as they add another 100-point caliber player and one of the best offensive forwards in the league. Dallas already ranked inside the Top Five in scoring and now have an incredibly dangerous power play. They are missing Miro Heiskanen, Seguin, and now Roope Hintz, but all should be back in time for the playoffs. Jake Oettinger continues to be one of the most consistent goalies in the league, and backup Casey DeSmith is allowing just 2.42 GA/G through his 18 starts, which is his best mark since his rookie season. Matt Duchene is another underappreciated piece to this Stars team, as he is tied for the team lead with 66 points and has 25 goals to this point. Dallas, like last season, will have an incredibly difficult route to the Stanley Cup with a likely first round matchup against Colorado, but they are in a better standing than last season with the addition of Rantanen. This could very well be the year that Dallas ends their Stanley Cup drought.

My Pick: Contender

Edmonton Oilers +800

It is hard to count Edmonton out with guys like Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl on their roster. However, they are just 3-7 over their last 10 games and they have allowed 4.2 GA/g over that span. Stuart Skinner took Edmonton to the finals last season, but he has taken a step back this season and does not look like he can take them far. In addition to his struggles, Evan Bouchard and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins are both on pace to produce 16 less points than they did last season, while Zach Hyman has regressed as a goal scorer. The Oilers have depth issues, they are outside the Top 10 in GA/G, and they didn’t do much at the deadline to improve. If Skinner can pick up the slack, they could be competitive, but their depth issues are a big concern this season.

My Pick: Pretender

Colorado Avalanche +950

The Avalanche betrayed Rantanen and have now fueled their potential first round playoff opponent in the Dallas Stars, with a 100-point scorer. Colorado acted quickly to address their poor goaltending by bringing in MacKenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood. Blackwood and Wedgewood have combined to allow 2.10 GA/G in their combined 40 appearances in a Colorado uniform. Nathan MacKinnon is leading the league in points, and the roster still has Cale Makar, Martin Necas, Ryan Lindgren, and deadline additions Charlie Coyle, Brock Nelson, and Erik Johnson. Colorado is a real threat this season; their one kryptonite is their performance on the road, and we all know you have to win on the road in the playoffs. They have gone just 17-14-1 on the road this season. Nonetheless, the Avs are hot right now. And if they can overtake Dallas and win home ice for the first round, they could make a run. A first-round matchup between Dallas and Colorado may be a better series than the actual Stanley Cup.

My Pick: Contenders

Vegas Golden Knights +1000

Vegas was unexpectedly quiet at the deadline, with their lone significant move being the reunion with Reilly Smith. Jack Eichel continues to lead the team offensively, while Tomas Hertl is finally producing at the level they expected when Vegas brought him in. The depth is there for Vegas, and they have the second-best PP% in the league (28.9%). However, their PK% is bad, and their goaltending isn’t as strong as some of the other top teams in the league. They struggle on the road, going just 14-12-4 while averaging just 3.03 GF/G. The Golden Knights should win the Pacific Division, but Minnesota will be a tough out for them, especially since the Wild are one of the best road teams in the NHL this season. Eichel deserves better, but the Golden Knights will have a near impossible route to the Stanley Cup.

My Pick: Pretenders

Dark Horse Candidates:

Washington Capitals +1100

How is it that the Washington Capitals are tied for atop the league standings, but have just the seventh best odds of winning the Stanley Cup? Logan Thompson has been an incredible addition to this Capitals team, while the offense has exploded and gone from one of the worst scoring teams last season to now leading the league with 3.66 GF/G. They have a lot of momentum with Alex Ovechkin nearing the goal record, and they have seen big improvements from Aliaksei Protas and Connor McMichael, and the reemergence of Pierre-Luc Dubois. Thompson is fourth amongst goalies with at least 35 starts, in GA/G, and his .916 SV% is the fourth best mark in the league. However, Thompson has just four postseason starts in his career. Washington is atop the league standings for a reason, and they will be a tough out for anyone in the playoffs.

Winnipeg Jets +1400

Tied with Washington are the Winnipeg Jets. The Jets have been the best and most complete team in the NHL hands down. Connor Hellebuyck is the best netminder in the league, and their offense is third in the NHL, averaging 3.47 GF/G. Kyle Connor has put together a healthy season up to this point and is leading the team with 81 points and 48 assists. Connor is tied for fifth in the league in points, tied for 12th in assists, and he is tied for fourth in goals. Connor is far from the only weapon the Jets have. Mark Scheifele is leading the team with 35 goals and is second on the team with 72 points. Gabriel Vilardi has 60 points on the season, while both Josh Morrissey and Nikolaj Ehlers both have more than 50 points. They also added Brandon Tanev and Luke Schenn at the deadline, giving the Jets even more depth. Winnipeg at +1400 to win it all might be the steal of the century.

My Stanley Cup Prediction:

As of now, I am riding with the Washington Capitals to win the Eastern Conference this season. Toronto could be another legit team that would be more of a contender than a pretender, but the Capitals season has been storybook and will continue to be with Ovechkin’s record pursuit. I have the Jets winning the Western Conference and opposing the Capitals. Normally, the chalk pick is a ‘looked down upon’ approach, but you get an incredibly value with both of these teams failing to be respected by the sportsbooks. Winnipeg is the best team in the league, and they will win the Stanley Cup this season.

My Pick: Winnipeg Jets, +1400

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