The 2023-2024 NHL season is going strong, and every team in the Eastern Conference will be looking to claim a conference title as it progresses. There were a ton of surprises in the postseason in the Eastern Conference last year, and that unpredictability can lead to plenty of chances to do well betting on futures. Here, we look at the Eastern Conference championship futures in the NHL, and who the favorites are to make it to the Stanley Cup Final.
Eastern Conference Championship Odds
Team | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
CAR
|
+500 | +350 | +340 | +380 | +410 |
NJ
|
+600 | +5000 | +10000 | +10000 | +1200 |
TOR
|
+600 | +600 | +650 | +700 | +700 |
TB
|
+750 | +1200 | +1300 | +1200 | +1200 |
BOS
|
+850 | +550 | +480 | +450 | +470 |
NYR
|
+900 | +500 | +425 | +500 | +500 |
PIT
|
+950 | +8000 | +12500 | +8000 | +2400 |
FLA
|
+1100 | +300 | +275 | +330 | +410 |
BUF
|
+1800 | +17500 | +15000 | +15000 | +18000 |
OTT
|
+2200 | +17500 | +25000 | +15000 | +13000 |
NYI
|
+2300 | +2500 | +3000 | +2500 | +4000 |
DET
|
+3800 | +3500 | +3000 | +3500 | +4000 |
WAS
|
+4100 | +17500 | +10000 | +7000 | +18000 |
CBJ
|
+7500 | +30000 | +50000 | +30000 | +25000 |
PHI
|
+10000 | +3500 | +3000 | +4000 | +3700 |
MON
|
+12000 | +30000 | +25000 | +20000 | +25000 |
Eastern Conference Championship Favorites
There are so many teams with a chance to win the Eastern Conference in the 2023-24 season, as there are around five teams inside of +1000 to win the East at this stage. The current favorites are the Florida Panthers and the Boston Bruins, who are off to another great start during the regular season after last year’s history-making campaign in the Atlantic Division.
The Panthers have turned the Atlantic Division race into an intriguing one by getting hot in the second half of the season and catching up to the Bruins. Whether or not that is a sign of things to come in the Eastern Conference playoffs remains to be seen, but it has certainly created some intrigue in the conference championship futures markets.
Along with the Bruins and Panthers are a handful of other teams considered to have a great chance to win the East. The New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs are among this group, but they will have to shake off some recent history of postseason struggles. Meanwhile, the Carolina Hurricanes also have a legitimate chance to get to the Stanley Cup Final this year by winning the Eastern Conference themselves.
It will be interesting to see how the positions of these favorites evolve over the course of this season. Boston and Florida are clearly a cut above the rest in the Atlantic, while the Rangers and Hurricanes are in a similar position in the Metro. But as the Bruins proved last year, none of that means much if you can’t win games in the postseason.
Eastern Conference Longshot Candidates
When it comes to longshot candidates to win the Eastern Conference, there are a couple of teams worth thinking about. A team like the Tampa Bay Lightning or Washington Capitals could be worth taking a flyer on, as they are involved in fights for the final playoff spots in their respective divisions, where the battle for the last couple of playoff spots will be decided by just a handful of points. If Washington and Tampa can get into the tournament, they could certainly get hot and steal the Stanley Cup.
Bettors may also think about a team like the Pittsburgh Penguins as a possible Eastern Conference contender. The Pens have not had a spectacular season by any means, but their goal differential is better than that of most of the teams they are competing for a playoff spot against in the Metro Division. If they can finish strong during the regular season, they could also become a threat to win the East in a hurry.