Whether it's Leon Draisaitl to win the Conn Smythe award at +750 or Edmonton covering a -1.5 spread, there are plenty of intriguing options for bettors on sportsbooks such as DraftKings.
With the NHL Stanley Cup Finals set to drop the puck on June 4, there is no better time to find some favorable odds for bettors prior to game one between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers. On DraftKings sportsbook, a myriad of options remain for bettors, as props, futures and possible award winners could call cash in on plus-odds for the rematch of the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals.
Last season, Edmonton fell behind 3-0 in the series before reeling off three consecutive victories of its own, forcing a decisive game seven back in the Panthers home arena. Florida was able to secure a 2-1 victory to bring home the franchise’s first championship, creating heartbreak for Oilers star Connor McDavid, who still managed to be awarded with the Conn Smythe trophy as the postseason’s best overall performer.
This year, it was made clear early on that Edmonton and its franchise star were out for revenge, but the team still finished third in the Western conference’s Pacific division behind the Vegas Golden Knights and Los Angeles Kings. Having fallen behind Los Angeles 2-0 in the first round, Edmonton has since gone 10-2 in its remaining Playoff games up to this point, including a five-game series victory over each of the Golden Knights and Dallas Stars. In the case of the Panthers, the franchise also secured a third place division in the Eastern conference’s Atlantic division, taking down the Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes in consecutive rounds to reach its third consecutive Stanley Cup Finals.
Only the Maple Leafs really tested Florida, taking the Panthers to seven games and arguably should’ve won the series having gotten off to a 2-0 series lead. Both Tampa Bay and Carolina fell to Florida in five games, creating a similar dynamic to how Edmonton eventually reached the sport’s ultimate stage and forming a rematch no one around the NHL will have much issue with seeing once again. On DraftKings sportsbook, the Oilers are favored with odds of -120 to win its first Stanley Cup in over 30 years, while the Panthers are listed at +100 to become the second back-to-back champions of the 2020s decade.
Tampa Bay rattled off three straight Finals appearances and back-to-back Stanley Cups before Florida was finally able to surpass its in-state rival and become the Eastern conference’s new goliath. This time around, however, the Oilers are a deeper and more experienced group, as well as have a goaltender who is playing perhaps the best hockey of his life in Stuart Skinner.
While Skinner has been relatively poor in Edmonton’s losses this postseason (leading to a temporary benching by head coach Kris Knoblauch), his performances in victories have been outstanding, including three shutout victories combined between the second round and Western Conference Finals. Skinner will have to match the efforts shown by Florida netminder Sergei Bobrovsky throughout the series, who is currently listed at +250 to take home the Conn Smythe award this year, second only to McDavid and his odds of +110.
One of the more intriguing names to possibly wager on is Leon Draisaitl, holding odds of +750 to win the award and just one point behind McDavid for total points scored during the 2024-2025 postseason. Draisaitl is an offensive catalyst in his own right and has garnered the recognition from NHL media to take home honors such as the Hart Trophy in previous seasons, so it’s not as if he has been living under McDavid’s shadow throughout his tenure with Edmonton. Despite last season’s Stanley Cup Finals reaching the maximum seven games, the current form of Edmonton makes its odds of covering a -1.5 series spread extremely tempting for bettors at +180.
If McDavid, Draisaitl and Skinner continue the play the trio executed against Vegas and Dallas, the Panthers may have a difficult time attempting to complete its quest for back-to-back titles. The chances of Florida wrapping up the series at home during game six also remain, given favorable odds of +170 on DraftKings even despite Edmonton receiving -120 odds to win the series overall.
No matter how the props or futures turn out, this Stanley Cup Finals should once again be one of the more entertaining matchups in quite some time, given the level of talent currently featured on the rosters of both sides. Whether it be McDavid, Draisaitl, Bobrovsky, Matthew Tkachuk or Alexsander Barkov, there is no shortage of stars preparing to hit the ice on June 4, as a game on victory could pay dividends, especially if Florida is able to steal a win on Edmonton’s home ice.
