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- The Florida Panthers won the franchise’s first Stanley Cup in 2024
- The 2024 Stanley Cup Final teams, the Panthers and Edmonton Oilers are the preseason betting favorites to win in 2025
- The Edmonton Oilers are the only Canadian NHL team among the 2025 Stanley Cup betting favorites
The 2024 Stanley Cup Final series between the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers went seven games, with Florida jumping to a 3-0 lead to open the series. The Oilers won the next three games to force Game Seven, but Edmonton could not pick up a fourth straight win, dropping that game 2-1 in the Panthers’ home barn of Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise. The early betting odds for the 2025 Stanley Cup have the Panthers and Oilers as the favorites to once again face off in the Final.
Before the 2024 NHL season began, the Colorado Avalanche and Carolina Hurricanes were the early betting favorites to win the Cup in 2024. Both teams were eliminated in the second round of the 2024 NHL Playoffs, with the Avalanche falling in six games to the Dallas Stars and the Hurricanes dropping their series against the New York Rangers in six. Florida topped New York in six games in the Eastern Conference Final, while Edmonton turned away the Stars in six games in the Western Conference Final.
The Oilers were one of the betting favorites to win the Stanley Cup in 2024 with odds of +900. Florida were not among the favorites. The Panthers’ preseason betting odds were +1800. Below, we look at the 2025 Stanley Cup Futures. You can also find the best NHL hockey betting sites here, and how to bet on the Stanley Cup, here.
2025 Stanley Cup Futures
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers have the best player in the NHL in Connor McDavid. One could argue that the Oilers also have the second-best player in the league in Leon Draisaitl. However, after making it to the Western Conference Finals in 2022, the Oilers fell to the Vegas Golden Knights in six games in the second round of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs. The team came within one win of capturing the Cup in 2024. This year is the final year on Draisaitl’s contract and his future with the club could depend on the Oilers winning the Cup in 2025.
The Oilers signed free agents Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson this summer. The pair have combined for 536 career goals. Edmonton also re-signed forwards Adam Henrique, Mattias Janmark, Connor Brown, Corey Perry, and Troy Stecher.
Edmonton let GM Kevin Holland walk at the end of the season, as his contract with the club expired on July 1. Jeff Jackson, who has been with the club since August of 2023 as the CEO of hockey operations, is the interim GM.
Florida Panthers
The Florida Panthers are in the midst of the best run in team history. Florida made it to the 2023 Stanley Cup Final, where they were defeated by the Vegas Golden Knights in five games. The club returned to the Cup Final in 2024, jumping to a 3-0 lead over the Edmonton Oilers before losing the next three contests. The Panthers went on to win Game 7 and the first Cup in franchise history in front of their hometown crowd. In 2025, Florida looks to become the first team since the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020-21 to go back-to-back.
As is often the case following a Stanley Cup win, the Panthers re-signed some important pieces of the roster and lost others to free agency. Gone are Brandon Montour, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Vladimir Tarasenko, Kevin Stenlund and Ryan Lomberg. Re-signing with the club are Sam Reinhart and Anton Lundell. GM Bill Zito added forwards Jesper Boqvist, Tomas Nosek and A.J. Greer and defensemen Nate Schmidt, Adam Boqvist, and Jaycob Megna.
The Panthers have kept most of the core intact heading into 2025, which bodes well for their chances to repeat as Cup champions.
New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils shook things up following a disappointing 2024 regular season where the team missed the playoffs. The club got a new coach in former Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe and then GM Tom Fitzgerald went to work on the roster.
Fitzgerald picked up goaltender Jacob Markstrom from the Calgary Flames for defenseman Kevin Bahl and a first-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. He then went out and signed Brett Pesce, Brenden Dillon, Stefan Noesen, Mike Hardman, Colton White, and Tomas Tatar. The Devils also picked up Johnathan Kovacevic and Paul Cotter via trades. To make room for the new members of the roster, the Devils let go of Cal Foote, Alexander Holtz, Kaapo Kahkonen, John Marino, Michael McLeod, Tomas Nosek, Akira Schmid, and Brendan Smith.
Fitzgerald’s goal was to shore up the team’s defense in 2024, and he did so on paper.
Best bet to win the 2025 Stanley Cup
One of the big questions the Edmonton Oilers faced heading into the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs was if Stuart Skinner was the goaltender the team needed to win the Cup. While Skinner didn’t hoist the trophy at the end of the season, he proved that he can be trusted between the pipes for the Oilers. Edmonton might have fallen short at the end of the 2024 campaign, but don’t expect that to happen in 2025. The betting pick is for the Edmonton Oilers to win the Stanley Cup in 2025.
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