The Stanley Cup is the major Ice Hockey trophy awarded to the NHL’s top professional franchise since 1926. Lord Stanley of Preston, the General Governor of Canada in 1892, gave his name to the world’s most prestigious Ice Hockey cup.
The NHL Finals, a culmination of the fierce competition between the Western and Eastern Conference Champions, is a Best-Of-Seven series that offers bettors many options at valuable NHL betting odds to win the Stanley Cup from all leading bookmakers.
For the 2024 season, the Edmonton Oilers from the Western Conference will face the formidable Florida Panthers, the best team from the East.
Relying on our Stanley Cup betting predictions, you can confidently explore the best options and prices for all leading and secondary markets from June 8th until the end of the NHL Finals.
2024 Stanley Cup Betting Tips
The easy part of betting on the NHL Finals is that you need to put only the two finalists under your radar compared to the regular season and the previous postseason stages.
Before placing bets, you must check the latest news on injuries and bans, coaches’ tactics, and public opinion about the series results.
Follow our Stanley Cup betting tips and enhance your winning chances of rolling on the ice.
Follow Injury News
There are reliable resources for all the latest info about injuries and bans, including lists of absences and their stats.
It’s the safest path to understanding the impact of a player’s possible absence from the games and building winning Ice Hockey betting strategies. Then, you can place bets, choosing among our Stanley Cup betting predictions.
Home-Ιce Αdvantage
It’s not weird that most athletes perform better at home than on the road in sports. The same applies to Ιce Ηockey, and that’s why all franchises are fighting for the home-ice advantage during the regular season.
When you back a favourite in a Stanley Cup game, pay attention to the possibility of overtime; in that case, home teams seem to have more chances of winning due to their fans’ support.
Goaltending Factor
A critical parameter you should analyse when breaking down Games 1 & 2 and coaches’ tactics. There are two main Ice Hockey-related stats for goaltenders: the Goals Against Average and the Save Percentage.
Following these metrics and our Stanley Cup betting tips, you can understand how often a goalie allows a goal and if he saves shots efficiently.
Public Betting
Sharp bettors evaluate consensus but rarely follow public betting trends; we follow the same strategy before releasing our Stanley Cup betting predictions.
Determining when a selection attracts a lot of money is essential, although a possible odds movement may be caused by other parameters like a key player’s absence.
Top Stanley Cup Predictions & Odds
We release two daily picks for each game every June period, as you can see by exploring our NHL Predictions Today section.
Our experts’ method is based on an in-depth knowledge of the sport, full stats coverage and extensive research to suggest where to bet on the Stanley Cup winner.
Let’s introduce two of our top picks for series Οutrights.
Florida Panthers To Win The Stanley Cup @1.70 (7/10) odds.
The Eastern Conference Champions are in the NHL Finals for the second time in a row and the second in 28 years. In the previous NHL season, they lost the series 4-1 against the reigning Champions, the Vegas Golden Knights.
Before the 2023 appearance in the Finals, they had only one previous appearance on that stage: they were swept in four games by the Colorado Avalanche in 1996.
Florida appears exceptional in the running postseason; the Panthers eliminated the Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston Bruins, and New York Rangers on the road to the trophy.
That’s why one of our top Stanley Cup betting predictions refers to the possibility of winning the trophy.
They are favourites to make it at 1.70 odds, while for Game 1, Florida pays 2.15 (23/20) odds to break the home-ice advantage in the 60-minute regular time. However, overtime probably can’t scare a never-say-die team like the Panthers.
Over 5,5 Total Games in the Series @1.50 (1/2) odds.
After being seeded higher than Edmonton in the regular season, the Atlantic Division Champions have the home-ice advantage in the Finals, which follow a 2-2-1-1-1 format.
The Los Angeles Kings, Vancouver Canucks, and Dallas Stars were eliminated by the Oilers, the underdog of the series, at 2.05 (21/20) odds. Trying to predict the total games in the NHL Finals, both finalists can take at least two wins each; so, the possibility of a Game 6 pays low at 1.50, but it’s a probable scenario.
Stanley Cup Betting Predictions For Top Ice Hockey Markets
We aim to review as many options and strategies as possible to help both novice and sharp Ice Hockey bettors profit from the NHL Finals. As a bedrock in our method, Bookmakers.bet separates game and series wagering, evaluating risk and reward ratios before introducing this series’ best NHL markets.
Let’s look at the best Stanley Cup betting predictions for the Finals.
Game Betting
Suppose you follow a game-by-game strategy, utterly different from betting on the entire series. Firstly, you must choose your side and select the favourite’s or the underdog’s path, evaluating the offered odds.
Then, it’s critical to do some deep research on the finalist you want to back. Injury news and tactics, current form and the days a team gets to rest before the Finals are some primary parameters you must consider.
Notice that there will be two or three days off between games for players’ fatigue reasons.
For the 2024 showdown, the one-million-dollar question applies to the Oilers’ ability to face a more experienced opponent. Florida is better equipped to deal with the Finals compared to one year ago, both emotionally and physically.
It seems a better opportunity for the Panthers to make a home win in regular time or overtime in Game 1, a top pick among our Stanley Cup betting predictions.
Florida Panthers vs Edmonton Oilers (Game 1) ⇒ 1 (inc. OT) @1.72 (18/25) odds.
Conn Smythe Trophy Winner
Before you predict the Conn Smythe Trophy Winner, it’s critical to look behind the history of previous NHL Finals and explore the fulfilled criteria of their respective MVPs.
The skater who will receive the great honour will be awarded for his series performance and the entire postseason. In recent years, the MVP has come from the Champions’ side.
Despite Florida being the odds’ favourite to lift the cup, the main favourite for the MVP award comes from the Oilers, the left-Centre Connor McDavid, at 3.00 (2/1) odds.
Remember that our experts suggest a formidable challenger from the underdog finalist on their Stanley Cup betting predictions. The second favourite comes from the Panthers and pays 5.00 (4/1) to win the trophy. Indeed, Aleksander Barkov is a phenomenal left-Centre, with a huge impact on Florida’s strategy.
However, if one of our main Stanley Cup bets, the Panthers to win the trophy, loses, then McDavid has a good chance of receiving the MVP award. So, we will risk it.
Conn Smythe Trophy Winner ⇒ Connor McDavid @3.00 (2/1) odds.
Other Winning Stanley Cup Bets
Searching our updated list of the top NHL bookmakers, you will find several options for wagering on the Finals. We make a shortlist of secondary but profitable markets where you can see winning alternatives for your Stanley Cup bets.
Top Goalscorer: In the postseason and during the Stanley Cup series, after a possible tie in the 60-minute regular time, there's no shootout process. Instead, overtime periods are played, and each overtime lasts 20 minutes.
So, any goals scored in overtime count for all skaters who compete for the Finals top goalscorer award. For the 2024 season, the main favourite is Oilers’ Zack Hyman at 5.00 (4/1) odds, a decent choice among our Stanley Cup betting tips.
Series Leader After 4 Games: The odds on the Finals work differently at the beginning of the series than halfway.
You can place an Οutright bet predicting the score at the beginning of the series or back the leading team after three or four games. After four games, both finalists will have played two home clashes at the crucial point.
Total Power Play Goals: The optimal situation for Ιce Ηockey teams is to play as much as possible at full strength (6 vs 6) or 5-on-5 conditions. Power play goals or pieces scored when a finalist has a one or two-person advantage can hugely impact the series.
Both title contenders play excellent umbrella and overload formations based on 5-on-4 conditions. They have great skaters who can move the puck in the opposite direction and make quick shots in the defensive zone.
How To Bet On The Stanley Cup Finals
If you are looking to risk money on your picks or on our Stanley Cup betting predictions, either for daily or futures bets, you should follow a specific path to understand what you can achieve based on the odds and your available bankroll.
So, follow our footprints and learn how to bet on NHL Finals to make a profit.
- 1 Follow Main Markets: Moneyline, Puck Line, and Totals markets are the most profitable ones for ice hockey. We choose them for NHL All-Star Game predictions and the whole season betting; in all cases, you take a 2-way street choosing between the favourites’ and underdogs’ odds and the best lines. That means you theoretically have 50:50 winning chances to win.
- 2 Use Stats: Sharp Ice Hockey bettors use stats in their favour to analyse the behaviour and the potential performance of the team they’re backing. Power-play and kill ratios, Corsi metric, and teams’ and players’ averages should be analysed in order to create a sufficient betting model.
- 3 Early Payout Offer: Leading bookies provide an early payout offer in ice hockey. You can take advantage, especially in the Stanley Cup Finals, where the underdog franchise can make upsets and win your bet when the team you back takes a 3-goal lead during the game.
- 4 Bet On Underdogs: Remember that you have to deal with the best NHL teams, so there aren’t major differences between the two contenders. Betting on Moneyline underdogs or Against The Spread by backing home teams is a profitable option you should consider.
Where To Bet On Τhe Stanley Cup
Our experts provide daily coverage throughout the National Hockey League, so you can find picks for seasonal betting. Bookmakers.bet releases two NHL Stanley Cup betting predictions for each game to offer you more alternatives on both main and secondary Ice Hockey markets.
Leading daily markets provide more value in their strategy for game-by-game NHL bettors. If you want to follow our Stanley Cup betting tips, you can choose among Moneylines, Puck Lines and Totals, the most straightforward, common and understandable types.
Both finalists in the Stanley Cup Finals have exceptional quality and ice skills. Still, specific parameters separate the favourite from the underdog team to lift the cup. These are: 1) home-ice advantage, 2) best goaltending, 3) more experience, 4) higher number of goalscorers and top assists-men, and 5) fewer injuries/bans.
Exploring our lists, you can find the best Stanley Cup bets for 2024 among leading NHL bookmakers who offer a broad range of Ice Hockey betting markets, high odds and offers that can bolster your bankroll. So, follow them if you want to back Moneylines, Puck Lines and Totals from our Stanley Cup betting predictions for the Panthers vs Oilers showdown.
Betting on the Stanley Cup MVP is one of the most challenging parts of Ice Hockey betting. There are several skaters, goaltenders, and offensive and defensive players for both contenders, who have high odds of claiming it. Try to find undervalued prices and a way to capitalise on the momentum of the skater you decide to back by looking into his current form.
Short-handed goals are rare in Ice Hockey. The lines are low (i.e., 0,5), which means the most probable short-handed goal scenario is for any finalist to score just one throughout the series. A team becomes short-handed when a skater is playing with a 4-on-5 disadvantage in the penalty box.
Our experts expect close games and series in their Stanley Cup betting predictions, so there is an increasing possibility of more than two empty net goals; especially if a Game 7 becomes necessary, that number is reachable. During the Finals, it’s highly expected that both teams will need at least one goal in the regular finish. That condition seems an excellent chance for the opponent to score an empty netter if the under-pressure team leaves its net defenceless, pulling the goaltender out. We evaluate the line as low so that you can take advantage of it.
The offensive effectiveness of both contenders needs a comprehensive stats analysis and a probable scenario for bettors who will attempt to profit from the total number of goals in the series. Firstly, you must predict the number of Stanley Cup games; if a Game 7 becomes necessary, then the Over on both finalists seems a decent option. On the other hand, you should check the goalies’ sharpness if you want to place an Under. It’s one of the more challenging markets, and we analyze it game-by-game in our Stanley Cup betting tips.