Contenders have started to separate themselves from the pretenders as the NHL comes off its 2019-20 All-Star break and the regular season heads into the stretch run ahead of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Below, we analyze the NHL futures odds and make our picks and best bets to be crowned Stanley Cup champions in mid-June.
Odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list.
Odds last updated Monday at 1:20 p.m. ET.
2019-20 Stanley Cup favorites
Tampa Bay Lightning (+800)
Last year’s Presidents’ Trophy winners are back to form after a poor start to their 2019-20 campaign. The Lightning have surged into second place in the Atlantic Division and fourth place in Eastern Conference through 52 games. Reigning Vezina Trophy winner Andrei Vasilevskiy has improved month-over-month and posted an other-worldly .948 save percentage and 1.58 goals against average over 10 games in January.
The Lightning lead the league in 5-on-5 scoring-chance percentage since Dec. 1 and rank third by Corsi For Percentage (total shot attempts). These odds aren’t great with this much time left in the season, but they’re likely to only go down from here.
Vegas Golden Knights (+1700)
The Golden Knights, who fired head coach Gerard Gallant Jan. 15, have the league’s best Corsi rating since Dec. 1. Puck luck has been a real issue for the NHL’s youngest franchise, as the Golden Knights rank 24th by PDO (shooting percentage plus save percentage) at 5-on-5 with a .989 mark.
Goalies Marc-Andre Fleury, Malcolm Subban, Garret Sparks and Oscar Dansk have combined for a .903 SV%, but Fleury should take over down the stretch run in an attempt to pass the overachieving Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers in the Pacific Division.
Place a sports bet on the 2019-20 Stanley Cup winner or other NHL games at BetMGM.
2019-20 Stanley Cup longshots
Florida Panthers (+2500)
The Panthers will likely need to rely on a wild-card berth for a postseason spot, as it’s difficult to see them surpassing any of the Boston Bruins, Lightning or Toronto Maple Leafs in the Atlantic Division. They rank second behind the Lightning, by PDO since Dec. 1, but are still just 17th on the season as a whole.
Highly paid G Sergei Bobrovsky was much better in December and January following an awful start to his tenure in Florida. If the two-time Vezina Trophy winner can return to true form, Florida’s fourth-ranked offense could become even more dangerous.
Philadelphia Flyers (+3500)
The Flyers offer a 35-1 return on your investment and that’s as high as bettors should be looking with a realistic chance of cashing this bet. The Flyers are tied for fifth in the Metropolitan Division with the Carolina Hurricanes, but the two teams are tied for ninth in the NHL (ahead of both the Golden Knights and Panthers) with 63 points through 52 games each. The Hurricanes are priced at +1650, making the Flyers an incredible value.
Want some action in this one? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.
Follow @EstenMcLaren and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.
Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.
[lawrence-newsletter]
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=2059]