- New York Rangers favorites to win the 2024 Presidents’ Trophy
- Vancouver Canucks in the mix to win their first Presidents’ Trophy since 2012
- Colorado Avalanche are the hottest team in the NHL as the 2024 NHL season winds down
Every year, at the end of the NHL regular season, the league presents the Presidents’ Trophy to the team with the most points in the standings. The trophy represents regular season dominance, what it doesn’t do, at least not lately, is guarantee prosperity in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Since the NHL began handing out the award at the end of the 1986 season, only eight teams who have claimed the Presidents’ Trophy have gone on to win the Stanley Cup. The last time that happened was in 2013, when the Chicago Blackhawks won the trophy and lifted the Stanley Cup.
Last year, the Boston Bruins won the Presidents’ Trophy with an impressive 135 points, the most a team has scored in NHL history. The team also set a record for most wins in a season with 65, finishing the year with a 65-12-5 record. The Bruins bowed out in the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, losing to the Florida Panthers in the first round in a seven-game series.
The Bruins and Panthers are among the teams fighting for the Presidents’ Trophy in 2024. Not among the trophy candidates is the team who won the Stanley Cup in 2023, the Vegas Golden Knights.
Before we look at the betting breakdown for the 2024 Presidents’ Trophy check out our betting picks to win the 2024 Stanley Cup and our tips for betting on the NHL.
2023-24 NHL Presidents’ Trophy betting picks
New York Rangers
The last time the NY Rangers won the Presidents’ Trophy was 2015, when the team wrapped up the regular season with a record of 53-22-7 and 113 points. The Rangers made it to the Eastern Conference Finals that year, but fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning in seven games. This year, the Rangers sport a 47-20-4 record with 11 games left in the regular season. New York finished last year with a 47-22-13 record and 107 points.
The Rangers schedule is favorable heading toward the end of the season with just four of their 11 remaining games coming against teams who could make the 2024 postseason. Those four games include two matchups against the Philadelphia Flyers, who were not a pick to make the playoffs at the start of the season.
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks won the Presidents’ Trophy in back-to-back years in 2011 and 2012. In 2011, the club finished the regular season at 54-19-9 and with 117 points. Vancouver wrapped things up the following year with a 51-22-9 record and 111 points. In 2011, the Canucks made the Stanley Cup finals but fell to the Boston Bruins in a seven-game series. The following year, the St. Louis Blues downed Vancouver in five games in the first round of the playoffs.
The Canucks had a 38-37-7 season last year with 83 points. With 11 games left in the regular season, Vancouver has a 45-18-8 record and 98 points. The club’s plus-60 goal differential is tops in the league this year. They have scored the fourth most goals in the league with 249 and allowed the fourth fewest goals in the NHL with 189.
The Canucks face more playoff teams than non-playoff teams in their final 11 contests, but they do have two games against the Arizona Coyotes and one game against the Anaheim Ducks.
Colorado Avalanche
If one is looking for betting value, then the Colorado Avalanche is the team to pick to win the 2024 Presidents’ Trophy. Colorado is 9-1 in its past 10 games and has wins in its eight most recent outings. The Avalanche have 95 points and a record of 45-20-5. They also have a game in hand over the Rangers and Canucks and two games in hand over the Boston Bruins, who have 97 points on the season.
The Avalanche’s most recent Presidents’ Trophy win came in 2021 when they had a 39-13-4 record and 82 points. Colorado made it to the second round of the playoffs that year, losing to Vegas in six games.
The Avalanche won the Stanley Cup in 2022, beating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2.
Best bets to win the Presidents’ Trophy in 2024
While the odds favor the NY Rangers to win the Presidents’ Trophy at the end of the 2024 NHL regular season, we’re going with the better betting value, therefore, the betting pick to win the Presidents’ Trophy in 2024 is the Colorado Avalanche.
See below a list of reliable sportsbooks and choose the best one for you.
