Here are our preseason picks for the available NHL PointsBet futures markets for the upcoming season:
To Win The Eastern Conference: Tampa Bay Lightning (+375)
Fresh off claiming their first Stanley Cup in 16 years, the Lightning are our preseason pick to once again make it out of the Eastern Conference. Right now, Tampa Bay only has $5.3 million in cap space. However, Tampa Bay will be returning for the 2021 NHL season with a nucleus of stars that have proven to be capable of success.
Players such as Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Ondrej Palat, Victor Hedman, and Andrei Vasilevskiy are all under contract and under 30 years of age. With the core of this team intact Tampa Bay are every chance of winning it all once again and are the deserved favourite to make it out of the East.
THIS IS OUR TIME
YOUR TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING ARE STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONS!!!!! pic.twitter.com/1trZdj2JPf
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) September 29, 2020
Odds to win the Eastern Conference (Top 5):
Tampa Bay Lightning (+375)
Boston Bruins (+550)
Philadelphia Flyers (+700)
Washington Capitals (+700)
Pittsburgh Penguins (+800)
To Win The Western Conference: Vegas Golden Knights (+400)
From a preseason standpoint the battle to get out of the Western Conference is shaping up to be a two team race between the Stanley Cup favourite Colorado Avalanche and my preseason pick to make it out of the West, the Vegas Golden Knights. After making the Western Conference finals in 2020, the Golden Knights have already bolstered their roster bringing in former St. Louis Blues captain Alex Pietrangelo as a free agent this offseason.
Signing Pietrangelo to a seven-year contract worth $8.8 million per season resulted in a drop in Golden Knights Stanley Cup odds from +950 to +750. We don’t see the Dallas Stars getting back to the Stanley Cup Finals, and given that Colorado missed out on both Pietrangelo and goalie Braden Holtby during free agency, the Golden Knights are our pick to win the Western Conference and the Stanley Cup.
THE VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS HAVE SIGNED DEFENSEMAN ALEX PIETRANGELO TO A SEVEN-YEAR CONTRACT!!!!!!! #VegasGoesGold | #VegasBornhttps://t.co/MI6vo45nEy
— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) October 13, 2020
Odds to win the Western Conference (Top 5):
Colorado Avalanche (+350)
Vegas Golden Knights (+400)
St. Louis Blues (+800)
Dallas Stars (+900)
Edmonton Oilers (+1000)
To Win The Stanley Cup: Vegas Golden Knights (+750)
In a Vegas Golden Knights vs Tampa Bay Lightning Stanley Cup Finals, we’d take the Golden Knights (+750) to defeat the reigning champions and hoist their first Stanley Cup.
Stanley Cup Sleeper: Vancouver Canucks +2000
At +2000 the Vancouver Canucks are a tempting early bet to win the 2020 Stanley Cup. The Canucks did some good things in the playoffs winning multiple postseason series for the first time since 2011. They have a lot of young talent and have recently bolstered their roster at free agency bringing in multiple veterans with playoff experience.
Odds to win the Stanley Cup (Top 5):
Colorado Avalanche (+700)
Vegas Golden Knights (+750)
Tampa Bay Lightning (+800)
Boston Bruins (+1100)
Toronto Maple Leafs (+1400)
*Odds are correct at time of publication.
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Image by: Michael Miller
