The mornings may be crisp, the leafs are starting to turn colors and 50-ft skeleton Halloween decorations are being pulled out of storage units. It’s officially the Fall, which means we are weeks away from the first puck drop of the NHL season! And all season long, Betting News will be dropping sharp NHL player props, game scripts and bets to keep your bankroll rolling. But first, let’s dissect the upcoming 2025-2026 NHL season, and see how much of the script we can get right.
Today we will highlight my two top picks for teams to win the Stanley Cup and their conference.
We are kicking off our NHL future bets series with two pieces on the Stanley Cup contenders. Let’s highlight two teams from each conference and why their futures to hoist glory are solid looks before the season begins. In the next couple weeks we will highlight everything from NHL awards, team point totals and player props in the Betting News NHL future bet series.
Betting Odds
Odds via BetOnline, an industry leader in the sports betting world.
1. The Florida Panthers: +650 to win the Cup/+320 to win the East on BetOnline:
The Panthers were able to keep the band together
Why they’re favored
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Recent Performance & Momentum: Florida has won back-to-back Stanley Cups (2024, 2025). That’s huge in terms of experience, especially in high-pressure situations. Players know how to win, know how to close. This is a dynasty, and a big reason why it’s a top NHL futures bet.
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Roster Stability: The Panthers had several key free agents like Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad and trade deadline pickup Brad Marchand all up for new contracts. They also added top defenseman Seth Jones mid-season. Mission impossible this offseason was to keep 2/3 of these UFA’s. Instead the Panthers miraculously kept all of them. This is a team who are getting to re-roll one of the best rosters the NHL has seen in the past 10 years.
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Goaltending & Defense: Sergei Bobrovsky remains a top netminder. Even though he had ups and downs (e.g. Game 4 of the Final vs Edmonton where he let in 5 on 16 shots), the overall Cup run shows he has the goods under pressure. Florida allowed the 5th fewest goals against per game during the regular season in 2024-25.
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Depth: Apart from superstar forwards, they have good role players, especially on 3rd/4th lines, and on defense. They also added Brad Marchand towards the end of trades, which boosts leadership and playoff experience. This is one of the deepest rosters in the league.
Weaknesses & Risks
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Three-peat fatigue / target on their back: Winning twice, teams are extra motivated to knock them off. Injuries, regression, or off-nights can be costly. Matthew Tkachuk may be out until December, recovering from injuries made during the last Cup run. We have not seen a team win three times in a row since the 1980-1983 New York Islanders did four straight times.
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Cap/age issues: The team is up against the cap corner. They had to let some depth pieces walk in order to keep their big UFA’s. There is a chance that this team is unable to add to the roster, so what we see now is likely the team making the playoff climb once again.
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Opponent improvements: Other contenders have made upgrades (Vegas adding Mitch Marner, etc.), so Florida won’t have an easy path.
Path to Conference & Cup
To win their conference again, Florida needs to maintain top seeding in the East (which gives home ice advantage in more series), keep their core mostly healthy, and rely on playoff experience. If they can match their past production and avoid major injuries, they are probably the strongest bet to reach the Final — and thus they have real value in Cup futures even if their odds might not offer huge return.At a three-to-one payout this is a NHL futures best bet.
Get 50% up to $750 Deposit on BetOnline for this pick
2. The Vegas Golden Knights: +1,000 to win the Cup/+500 to win the West on BetOnline:
Jack Eichel could be a contender for this years MVP
Strengths
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Recent Finalists / Experienced Core: Vegas has been to multiple Finals in recent years; they understand what it takes, have key veterans. That experience is its own asset. This is one of the deepest teams, that have a large and heavy defense and forward group. It is a roster built for the intensity of the playoffs. However, last year they lacked skill. Luckily this season is different.
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Roster Upgrades: The Vegas Golden Knights landed the top unrestricted free agent this offseason, Mitch Marner. This is a 100 point player and one of the primier playmakers in the league. This influx of skill will go a long way, and could help boost top center Jack Eichel to MVP status. This addition makes the Golden Knights a favorite for the Cup and at +1,000 one of the best NHL future bets.
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Defensive Reliability: They have typically been strong in the defensive side, both in structure and in goaltending. Depth in blue line and special teams are usually solid in Vegas. Even with the injury to Alex Pietrangelo, this is one of the deepest bluelines in the league.
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Motivation after missing expectation: There is often a push when a strong team fails to win; experience + desire = possibility of reloading with intent.
Weaknesses / Risks
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Goaltending: Vegas’s weakest point is their goaltenders. While Aiden Hill won the Stanley Cup with the team three seasons ago, he isn’t as consistent as other top netminders.
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Consistency in playoff performance: They have had strong regular seasons, but in past years have been vulnerable in knockout rounds.
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Aging Veterans: Some of their core have less runway; maintaining speed and physicality matters in playoffs. In fact, top defenseman Alex Pietrangelo will not play this season due to injury complications.
Path to Conference & Cup
Vegas needs to win the Pacific/West, presumably get favorable matchups, use home ice advantage. They will rely on special teams, tight defense in playoff series, and contributions from both established stars and secondary scoring. If Marner and newly retained players perform, they have a credible shot to win the conference, which would set them up for a Stanley Cup run, making their conference win at +500 an NHL futures best bet.
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