SI Gambling insider Frankie Taddeo breaks down the NHL futures market for every division, as well as the Stanley Cup.
The action on the ice continues to heat up, with all four of the NHL’s restructured divisions becoming tightly contested races. Focusing on a favorite or spotting a longshot who offers long-term value is often the best way to attack futures betting. Bettors last week quietly began targeting the Minnesota Wild, who have quietly won six of their last 10 games while all of the attention in the West is focused on the Las Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche. The Wild, who last week were being offered at odds of +4500, has now fallen to +1900 this week. The Edmonton Oilers offer value at odds of +2500 thanks to possessing the league’s top two scoring leaders in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. The defending Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning, who sat at odds of +800 last week, has once again become the overall betting favorites at odds of +500. The Toronto Maple Leafs, who own the NHL's best record, continue to see their odds drop and are now found as the second overall betting choice at odds of +550.
Let’s dive in and take a deeper look at any changes after more than a month of games in the NHL betting odds for each of the divisions as well as Stanley Cup futures at DraftKings Sportsbook.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 CENTRAL DIVISION
- Tampa Bay -200
- Carolina +250
- Florida +500
- Chicago +3000
- Dallas +4500
- Nashville +6500
- Columbus +7500
- Detroit +60000
Frankie Whispers Betting Breakdown: In a tightly bunched Central Division, the Tampa Bay Lightning 15-4-1 record (31 points) are tied atop the division with the Carolina Hurricanes 15-6-1 (31 points). Tampa Bay, one of the hottest clubs in the NHL, are on a five-game winning streak and thus have seen their odds rise from -125 favorites to win the Central to -200 this week. The Lightning possess the second-best goal differential (+32) of any team in the NHL thanks to defending Vezina Trophy winner Andrei Vasilevskiy who continues to anchor the club with a 13-3-0 record combined with a league-best 1.65 GAA and a .942 save percentage. The Florida Panthers (13-4-4, 30 points) who are 5-3-2 in their last 10 games remain one point out of first place.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 EAST DIVISION
- Boston +135
- Philadelphia +300
- Washington +425
- NY Islanders +450
- Pittsburgh +800
- NY Rangers +5500
- NJ Devils +6000
- Buffalo +30000
Frankie Whispers Betting Breakdown: The Boston Bruins (12-5-2, 26 points) hold several games in hand over the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals but have lost their top spot in the Eastern standings - resulting in a shift in their odds. The Bruins, who were offered at -143 to win the East last week, can now be found at small plus-odds of +135 at DraftKings Sportsbook. The Capitals (13-5-4, 28 points), who have won four consecutive games and own the top spot in the division, have seen their odds of +1000 last week sliced down to +425 this week. The Islanders (12-6-4, 28 points), who have won seven of their last ten games, have also garnered strong attention by the oddsmakers leading to their odds of +900 last week cut to +450 this week.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 NORTH DIVISION
- Toronto -835
- Winnipeg +900
- Montreal +1000
- Edmonton +1100
- Calgary +5000
- Vancouver +20000
- Ottawa +95000
Frankie Whispers Betting Breakdown: The Toronto Maple Leafs (18-4-2), who have the most points (38) of any NHL team, continue to become more prohibitive favorites to win the North each week. The Leafs are led by the league’s top goalscorer in Auston Matthews (18 goals). The oddsmakers at DraftKings Sportsbook have moved the Maple Leafs from -143 two weeks ago to -835 favorites this week to win the realigned North. The Edmonton Oilers (14-11-0, 28 points), who possess the top two NHL scorers in Connor McDavid (14 goals; 26 assists, 40 points) and Leon Draisaitl (10 goals; 25 assists, 35 points), sit in third place in the league standings a distant 10 points behind Toronto. The Oilers have not moved in the oddsmakers' power rankings holding their +1100 odds offered two weeks ago.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 WEST DIVISION
- Vegas +100
- Colorado +175
- Minnesota +400
- St. Louis +1300
- LA Kings +4000
- Arizona +4000
- San Jose +7500
- Anaheim +15000
Frankie Whispers Betting Breakdown: The Vegas Golden Knights (14-4-1, 28 points) hold a one-point lead over St. Louis (13-8-2, 28 points) in the West. However, we should note that the Blues have played the most (23) games of any team in the division. The Colorado Avalanche (12-7-1, 25 points) have won six of their last 10 games but have lost the top betting spot to win the West at DraftKings Sportsbook, slotting behind the Golden Knights at odds of +175. Las Vegas continues to be led by star goalie Marc-Andre Fleury who owns the NHL’s second-best 1.71 GAA and .939 save percentage. The club that has made the biggest move in the betting odds is the red-hot Minnesota Wild - who have won six of their last 10 games. The Wild, who were offered at odds of +1500 two weeks ago, have seen their once healthy double-digit odds reduced to only +400 this week.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 STANLEY CUP
- Tampa Bay +500
- Toronto +550
- Colorado +800
- Vegas +900
- Boston +1150
- Carolina +1200
- Edmonton +1400
- Philadelphia +1500
- Minnesota +1900
- Montreal +2300
- NY Islanders +2300
- Pittsburgh +2300
- Florida +2300
- Washington +2500
- Winnipeg +3000
- St. Louis +3200
- Calgary +4500
- Dallas +5000
- Chicago +5500
- LA Kings +6500
- Nashville +7500
- NY Rangers +7500
- NJ Devils +7500
- Columbus +8500
- Arizona +9000
- San Jose +10000
- Vancouver +10000
- Anaheim +12500
- Buffalo +15000
- Ottawa +50000
- Detroit +65000
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