NHL Betting News This Week | Stanley Cup 2027 Best Bets, Market Watch & Betting Analysis | June 16, 2026
Hey NHL fans, are you ready for an instant replay in the Stanley Cup final?
Oddsmakers are seeing it that way.
Barely removed from winning the 2026 Stanley Cup, the Carolina Hurricanes are set up as the opening betting choice to repeat as the 2027 NHL champion in Stanley Cup futures for the 2026-27 season
In the latest NHL betting lines, the Hurricanes are the +700 chalk to repeat as Stanley Cup champions. It’s the reigning Presidents’ Trophy winners as the NHL’s top regular season, the Colorado Avalanche, who are established as the +800 second betting choice.
Even at that, the betting odds on the Avalanche are already lengthening. The Avs opened with a line of +750 in this betting market.
Vanquished in the final by the Hurricanes, the Vegas Golden Knights are the third pick in this market at +850. The Golden Knights opened with a line of +900, so their odds have shortened.
Next at +1000 are the Florida Panthers. Florida won the Stanley Cup in 2024 and 2025, but missed the playoffs entirely in 2026. Beaten finalists in both 2024 and 2025, the Edmonton Oilers have fairly short odds among the Canadian NHL teams at +1100.
Also at +1100 are the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tampa Bay won the Stanley Cup in 2020 and 2021 and lost the 2022 final to the Avalanche.
The Minnesota Wild (+1300), Dallas Stars (+1500), and Ottawa Senators (+1800) all have Stanley Cup odds shorter than +2000. Losing Eastern Conference finalists, the Montreal Canadiens are set with a betting line of +2500 to win the Cup.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, the Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames share the longest odds to win the Cup at +30000.
The Cup win was a long time coming for the Hurricanes. Carolina previously won the title in 2006.
The Golden Knights have advanced to the Stanley Cup final for the third time. Vegas (2023) is a recent Stanley Cup winner. The Golden Knights were beaten by Washington in the 2018 final.
Best NHL bets for Stanley Cup final matchups
Each spring, the grueling four rounds of competition for the Stanley Cup not only make for compelling entertainment, it also offer bettors a bunch of wagering opportunities. It starts with the traditional standard fare of game betting on moneylines, puck lines, and total goals. There are also player and game prop options, as well as regular and same-game parlay plays.
Beyond that, NHL bettors can wager on the outcome for each of the eight first-round series. Longer range wagers include future book betting on the winners of the Eastern and Western Conferences, as well as the Stanley Cup. Exact final matchups and precise series outcomes are other betting choices. And there’s also the chance to bet on which player will take home the coveted Conn Smythe Trophy as Stanley Cup MVP.
Before making a deeper assessment of which way to lean in the NHL playoffs best bets, why not take a look at our handy best NHL betting sites list to make the most out of your bets, including the latest props and futures wagering. It’s never too early to get a wager down on which of these NHL teams is going to win the title. Have a look at our NHL futures page to see what other wagering options are available during the NHL regular season and the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Best Stanley Cup playoff future bets
Hurricanes are favored to win the Stanley Cup
Injuries scuttled the Avalanche
Vegas is always a Cup contender
Stanley Cup keeps going Southeast
When will Canada’s drought end?
Colorado came into the Stanley Cup playoffs as the NHL regular-season champion. The Avalanche entered the postseason as the chalk to win the Stanley Cup, and they looked like champs as they rolled through the first two playoff rounds. However, injuries to their Hart Trophy-winning center, Nathan MacKinnon, and Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Cale Makar put Colorado on the back foot in the Western Conference final against Vegas, and the Avs never recovered. They suffered a further blow since the season ended. General manager Chris McFarland left the club to take over as GM of Colorado's Central Division rivals, the Nashville Predators.
The Montreal Canadiens got to the Eastern Conference final before succumbing to the eventual Cup champion Hurricanes. They were the last Canadian NHL team to be ousted from the playoffs. When Montreal bowed out, it extended the lengthy drought for the league's Canadian clubs. It was the Canadiens who most recently won the Stanley Cup in 1993. There have been some close calls in recent years. The Edmonton Oilers lost the Cup final series in 2024 and 2025. Montreal lost to Tampa Bay in the 2021 final. Still, it's the Ottawa Senators (+1800) who have the shortest odds among Canadian teams in 2027 Stanley Cup futures. Ottawa hasn't won the Stanley Cup since 1927, and hasn't played in the Cup final series since 2007.
Latest NHL Entry Draft betting trends
Next up on the NHL agenda is the NHL Entry Draft, and there are already betting lines associated with that event. Canadian forward Gavin McKenna of the Penn State Nittany Lions is the favorite to be the first player chosen in the draft.
In a McKenna vs the Field prop wager, you'll get odds of -2500 if you bet him to go first overall in the draft. The betting line is +800 if you choose to take the field.
There are also several points props set for McKenna's rookie NHL season. He's -375 to record a 50+ point rookie season, but +175 to collect 60+ points as a rookie NHLer. McKenna to score 25+ goals in his first NHL campaign offers a betting line of +225. It's +1000 that he'll score 30+ goals as an NHL rookie.
The Toronto Maple Leafs own the first overall selection in the draft and are expected to choose McKenna. Another prop wager combines McKenna scoring 30+ goals and the Leafs making the playoffs at odds of +1000.
McKenna scoring 30+ goals and the Maple Leafs winning the Atlantic Division title is set at a betting line of +2000.
Dylan Larkin's next team odds
The surprise of the NHL offseason so far is that Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin has issued a trade request to the team. The Wings have missed the NHL playoffs each of the past 10 years. That's the longest active drought in the league. Larkin has played all 11 of his NHL seasons with Detroit.
Elliotte Friedman: Re Dylan Larkin trade request: I don't think this is the last one we're gonna get this offseason, I've been working on some others - FAN Hockey Show (6/8)
— NHL Rumour Report (@NHLRumourReport) June 9, 2026
There are odds on Larkin's next team. The Minnesota Wild are the +200 favorites to land the Detroit captain in a deal. Next at +300 are the Canadiens.
They are followed by the Anaheim Ducks (+600), Philadelphia Flyers (+700), Boston Bruins (+800), and Los Angeles Kings (+800).
Complicating matters is the fact that Larkin has a full no-movement clause in his contract with the Red Wings. He'll get the final say in his ultimate destination.
Hurricanes maintain Stanley Cup omen
The Hurricanes went 16-3 in the playoffs. They became the sixth team in Stanley Cup history to start a postseason 8-0, according to NHL historical records. Every team to open the NHL playoffs 8-0 has gone on to win the Stanley Cup.
Edmonton actually began the 1985 NHL playoffs that spring with nine successive victories. The Oilers finished that playoff year with a 15-3 record.
In 1976, the Montreal Canadiens started the playoffs 8-0. Montreal wound up going 12-2 and winning the Cup. In 1969, Montreal opened the playoffs 8-0, winning the Stanley Cup while finishing with a 12-2 slate.
In the six-team NHL era, when it took only eight wins to capture the Cup, two clubs managed to go 8-0 and complete a perfect playoff season. The Canadiens did it in 1960, and the Detroit Red Wings went 8-0 while winning the Stanley Cup in 1952.
Avs bit by curse
The Presidents' Trophy curse bit the Colorado Avalanche. This is the 40th season that the NHL has awarded the Presidents' Trophy to the top regular-season team. Of the previous 39 winners, only eight teams have gone on to win the Stanley Cup. The most recent to do so was the 2012-13 Chicago Blackhawks. In the NHL's salary cap era (since the 2005-06 season), only three Presidents' Trophy winners have also won the Stanley Cup.
This was the third time in four springs that Colorado was favored to win the Stanley Cup. The Avs didn't win in any of those seasons.
Captain and coach
Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour was the captain of the Hurricanes when they won their only Stanley Cup title in 2006.
The Carolina Hurricanes haven’t played in the Stanley Cup Final in 20 years.
How long ago is that?
The first two games were broadcast on the Outdoor Life Network (OLN).
You also might recognize who netted the unlikely winner in Game 1.#SoundTheSiren pic.twitter.com/sxqABiAQu2
— Josh Graham (@JoshGrahamShow) June 1, 2026
Guiding the Canes to this year's title, he joined Toe Blake of the Montreal Canadiens and Ralph (Cooney) Weiland of the Boston Bruins in having captained and coached the same team to a Stanley Cup championship.
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