The Stanley Cup is arguably the most recognizable trophy in sports, and every NHL team starts the season aiming to hoist it at the end. We're officially a quarter of the way through the 2023-24 NHL season, and it's a good time to examine live Stanley Cup odds.
You can bet on the odds for each team to win the Stanley Cup at all of the best sports betting sites. Stanley Cup futures odds are posted in the offseason and stay live from the start of the NHL season in October through the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the spring.
This guide can help with your Stanley Cup futures bets and shows the latest NHL championship odds as posted at the best NHL betting sites.
Stanley Cup odds
See below for current Stanley Cup futures odds direct from MHL betting sites. If you see odds you like, click them to visit that sportsbook and claim your first-bet bonus.
Who are the Stanley Cup odds favorites?
Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche are the consensus betting favorite to win the Stanley Cup. Colorado's offense is led by center Nathan MacKinnon. He tallied 22 goals and 64 points through 39 games.
Colorado (25-11-3) lead the NHL's Central Division.
Vegas Golden Knights
The reigning Stanley Cup champions have come out strong in defense of their first NHL title. At 22-12-5, the Golden Knights trail the Canucks by just two points for the Pacific Division lead.
Jack Eichel leads the Las Vegas offense with 16 goals and 40 points on the season. Goalie Adin Hill flourished early with a 10-2-2 record and a 1.93 goals against average, but he's been out with an undisclosed injury since mid-December.
New York Rangers
The Rangers added veteran goalie Jonathan Quick as a backup this season. The 37-year-old net minder is turning back the clock and playing some of the best hockey of his career. Quick has outperformed starter Igor Shesterkin, one of the best goalies in the league, with a 9-2-1 record.
Artemi Panarin is New York's leading scorer with 24 goals and 53 points.
Boston Bruins
The Bruins have solidified their position as leaders in the Atlantic Division with a formidable 23-8-6 record. Boston established an NHL record with 65 wins last season.
David Pastrnak is again the offensive catalyst with 23 goals and 53 points. Brad Marchand, Pavel Zacha, and Charlie Coyle are also key contributors on offense.
Reigning Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark is 10-5-2 in net.
How to read Stanley Cup odds
The best sports betting apps will post Stanley Cup odds in American odds format, which means you’ll see both negative and positive odds. Negative odds indicate the favorite, while positive odds signal the underdog.
Negative odds, such as -155, tell you how much you have to wager to win $100. In this example, if you bet $155 and your wager won, you’d get $100 in winnings (plus your stake back).
Positive odds, such as +220, work slightly differently. The number you see shows you how much you stand to win for every $100 you bet. So in this example, if you bet $50 at those odds and you won, you’d be paid $110 in profit (plus your $50 back).
Every bet you make will pay out based on how much you wager and the odds when you finalize your bet slip.
What bets can I make for the Stanley Cup Playoffs?
Because the NHL is one of the top US sports, it lends itself to a broad selection of bet types. Below, we look at some of the most common and popular NHL betting odds.
- Moneyline: This is a very straightforward bet that requires you to choose which team will come away from the game with a victory.
- Puck line: Similar to the point spread in other sports, the puck line is typically set at 1.5 goals. This cushion allows the underdog to win puck line bets if they lose by only one goal (or win outright). Conversely, the favorite must win by at least two goals to cover a puck line bet.
- Over/under: Also known as a totals bet, this wager gives you a predicted number of goals the two teams will combine to score. Your job is to determine whether they will combine to score over that predicted total or be held under it.
- Period betting: These are moneyline and over/under bets focused on individual periods within the game.
- Prop bets: Proposition bets are side bets with a sportsbook on events during the game that usually don’t tie to the final outcome. These can be based on individual player performances or team accomplishments.
- Parlays: Multiple wagers placed on a single bet slip. All of the legs of the parlay have to win for the parlay to pay out.
- Live betting: Also called “in-game betting,” this style of wagering lets you place bets on games while they are being played.
- Futures: Just as the name implies, NHL futures odds usually focus on end-of-season results or accomplishments.
You’ll encounter a wide variety of NHL bets at online sportsbooks, so don’t be afraid to try new bet types and expand your betting experience.
How Stanley Cup odds change throughout the season
Sports betting lines move for two main reasons:
- New information
- Public betting
In the case of Stanley Cup futures odds, regular-season team performance will be the primary driver behind odds movement.
Oddsmakers use a variety of sources to gather information when crafting their initial lines. Upon release, Stanley Cup futures odds will be very favorable for the bettor, but that’s because so little data is available this early in the process.
As more information becomes available, such as how a team is playing, how players are performing, injuries, and other news, the oddsmakers can tighten up the lines. The closer it gets to the postseason and the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the more accurate those lines become.
As a bettor, you must weigh the risk versus reward of betting early when there isn’t a lot of information available vs. waiting until the picture is clearer but the odds are less friendly.
How Stanley Cup futures betting works
Futures bets are a large part of every sportsbook’s offerings, which means you can find them for just about any sport. The Stanley Cup Final is no exception, especially since the NHL is one of the four major US sports leagues.
With futures bets, you can bet on which team you think will win the NHL championship well before the regular season even begins. The best sports betting sites like Caesars and DraftKings tend to publish their Stanley Cup futures odds not long after the previous NHL season comes to a close.
When the lines are first released, the odds will differ greatly from what they will look like during the regular season and as the playoffs approach. This is due to the limited data oddsmakers have to work with when they initially make their odds.
Those lines will shift as the offseason progresses and the regular season starts. The more games that are played, the clearer the playoff picture becomes. The field of reasonable contenders narrows, so the odds tighten.
As a bettor, you have to weigh the risk versus reward of betting early or late. Betting early means you’re giving yourself the best possible odds, but you may lack pertinent information.
By waiting, you’ll encounter less favorable odds, but you can make a much more educated decision. This is the negotiation of timing any futures bet.
See more: NHL betting promos
Recent Stanley Cup winners
Here are the last 10 Stanley Cup championship teams and the team's coach at the time.
| Season | Team | Coach |
|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | Colorado Avalanche | Jared Bednar |
| 2021-22 | Tampa Bay Lightning | Jon Cooper |
| 2020-21 | Tampa Bay Lightning | Jon Cooper |
| 2019-20 | St. Louis Blues | Craig Berube |
| 2018-19 | Washington Capitals | Barry Trotz |
| 2017-18 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Mike Sullivan |
| 2016-17 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Mike Sullivan |
| 2015-16 | Chicago Blackhawks | Joel Quenneville |
| 2014-15 | Los Angeles Kings | Darryl Sutter |
| 2013-14 | Chicago Blackhawks | Joel Quenneville |
Other NHL futures bets
Besides betting on the Stanley Cup playoffs, numerous other hockey futures bets are available. Futures bets usually involve a considerable time between the bet's placement and the outcome's determination. These bets can focus on team or player achievements.
Team futures might comprise bets on which team will advance to the Stanley Cup Final, secure the Presidents' Trophy, win their conference, or take their division. Odds for these bets will fluctuate based on each team's probability of attaining particular milestones.
Season win totals are another popular futures bet, with sportsbooks establishing lines predicting each team's tally of victories before the start of the season.
Bettors can then wager on whether a specific team will secure more or fewer victories than the sportsbook's forecast. This type of bet is widespread across numerous North American sports, not only hockey.
Futures bets can also focus on individual player performance, such as forecasting which player will secure major end-of-season awards such as the Vezina Trophy, Hart Trophy, or Norris Trophy.
Some of the NHL futures available at many sports betting sites include:
- Vezina Trophy
- Norris Trophy
- Division champions
- Conference champions
- Season win totals
- Top goalscorer
- Top point scorer
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