2024 Stanley Cup Odds: NHL Playoff Predictions & Best Bets | Pickswise

The most anticipated postseason is finally here! It took until the very last day of the regular season for each of the 2024 Stanley Cup playoff matchups to be determined, but all 8 series are now set. As we approach the first Games as soon as tomorrow, we’ve provided our best NHL Stanley Cup playoff predictions. We’ve got a best bet in the Western Conference and a longshot in the Eastern Conference, so let’s get into it. 

Along with our best NHL futures picks, be sure to check out all of our NHL picks for today’s action.

NHL Playoff Best Bet: Canucks -1.5 games over Predators (+138 at FanDuel)

With the Western Conference being home to the likes of Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon, there is no shortage of superstars on the ice. While the Edmonton Oilers and Colorado Avalanche are among the top favorites to hoist Lord Stanley, the best bet from our NHL Stanley Cup playoff predictions is actually focused elsewhere. That would be with a team that actually won their division – the Vancouver Canucks.

Their year-to-year turnaround was undoubtedly the best of the season, and their Pacific Division title was their first since 2013. With 6 All-Star selections, they led the entire NHL in that regard, and they’ll get to take on a rather inconsistent Nashville Predators team in the first round. Outside of the top 3 teams in the Central Division, it felt as though none of them wanted to make the postseason, and that was evident when these teams played one another. In their 3 meetings, the Canucks came out victorious each time.

Not only that, but the most recent 2 meetings were 3 goal victories. We also haven’t seen the Preds perform against top comPetition down the stretch. Of their 4 wins over the last 10 Games, not a single one came against a playoff team. Therefore, we’re taking Vancouver -1.5 Games in the first round as the best bet from our NHL Stanley Cup playoff predictions. 

NHL Playoff Longshot: Islanders over Hurricanes (+280 at DraftKings)

Although we’re still getting some great value with plus-money odds using our best bet, we also have a longshot pick for you. We aren’t going quite as far as to say the Washington Capitals can upset the New York Rangers, but we are targeting the other squad from the Big Apple.

That would be the Islanders, who also have a tough task in the first round taking on the Carolina Hurricanes. They made it to the Eastern Conference Finals a season ago and bolstered their roster at the trade deadline with guys like Jake Guentzel, formerly of the Pittsburgh Penguins. However, if there is one team no one should want to face right now, it’s the Islanders. With what looked like it was going to be a heated battle for both of the Eastern Conference Wild Card spots, New York quickly silenced that by securing one of them rather quickly.

In other words, they’ve gotten hot at the best time of year, going 8-1-1 in the last 10 games of the season. That included a shutout win over the aforementioned Predators, and even a victory over the cross-town rival Rangers. They split their 4-game season series with Carolina, but with the form they’re currently in, the Islanders are the longshot pick from our NHL Stanley Cup playoff predictions.