NHL Futures Bets 2026
Betting on regular-season NHL games is fun, and traditional betting types can offer excellent value for sports bettors, betting on NHL futures can up the ante a little for those up to the challenge. What is an NHL future bet? A wager placed on an event or instance that happens far off into the future – like betting on the winner of the Stanley Cup, for instance, months in advance.
NHL Stanley Cup futures for the following year are released almost immediately after the conclusion of the season, sometimes hours after the Stanley Cup is hoisted. Sportsbooks tend to act quickly to get the NHL futures odds out, so sports bettors can lock in the most far-out odds possible.
It is not easy to predict the winner of the Stanley Cup immediately after the season concludes – few teams have had back-to-back wins, and you never know what’s going to happen in the off-season with trades and drafts. Many sports bettors take smaller risks, by placing small wagers on far-out picks in the slight chance that the team picks up their boots.
Betting on the Stanley Cup Champions isn’t the only type of NHL futures bets you can place, you can bet on a number of things that happen throughout the season, like the NHL odds to win the division and the conference finalists.
We have compiled a little guide to help guide you through betting on popular NHL futures, and most importantly, the 2026 Stanley Cup Futures coming up. It’s important to understand all NHL betting types, and which betting types make the most sense for your personal betting strategy. If you’re really new, understanding how NHL odds work can be a great starting point in your NHL betting strategies.
Best NHL Futures Betting Sites
To receive quality prices on all of your future wagers, please refer to the sportsbooks recommended in our Top 5 Table. Remember, NHL futures bets will help enhance your interest throughout the entire season.
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NHL Futures odds board
We look ahead to the NHL odds board looking to predict the 2025/26 Champion.
The NHL Futures odds look like this:
| NHL Stanley Cup Winners Odds 2026 |  |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado Avalanche | +280 | +295 | +280 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | +380 | +370 | +370 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | +700 | +700 | +720 |
| Vegas Golden Knights | +900 | +900 | +900 |
| Edmonton Oilers | +1100 | +1100 | +1100 |
| Dallas Stars | +1800 | +1800 | +1800 |
| Minnesota Wild | +1900 | +1900 | +1900 |
| Buffalo Sabres | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
| Utah Mammoth | +3000 | +3000 | +3000 |
| Montreal Canadiens | +4000 | +4000 | +4000 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | +4500 | +4500 | +4500 |
| Washington Capitals | +5000 | +5000 | +5000 |
| Los Angeles Kings | +5000 | +5000 | +5000 |
| Ottawa Senators | +5000 | +5000 | +5000 |
| New York Islanders | +5500 | +5500 | +5500 |
| Detroit Red Wings | +5500 | +5500 | +5500 |
| Anaheim Ducks | +7000 | +7000 | +7000 |
Last updated on: March 19, 2026
Latest NHL News
While the NHL season was postponed for months due to the coronavirus pandemic that stopped all professional sports in their tracks in March, the NHL decided to return to play with a playoff series beginning on August 1st.
The most popular 2026 NHL Futures market to bet on is the odds to win the 2026 Stanley Cup Finals – for obvious reasons.
Odds to Win The Stanley Cup Finals
As you can see, the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins came out as the favorites coming into the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The NHL chose to do a 24 team playoff format – 12 teams from each conference, more than their regular 8, but a different format overall. The top four in each conference would play a round-robin to determine seedings.
It’s evident that the oddsmakers predict an Eastern Conference team to win the Stanley Cup, having the Bruins and Lightning as heavy favorites going into the playoffs. The toss-up is between the two though – you can tell that oddsmakers aren’t sure which will win, one of them will be crowned Conference champs.
This break gave players coming off of injuries more recovery time, which ultimately could benefit teams in the long run.
It seems oddsmakers are confident in Colorado but are keeping their eye on Las Vegas and St. Louis moving into the playoffs. Those three are the main contenders for the Western Conference Champions, but we have to always keep in mind that an underdog can come out of the ‘Blues’ – pun intended- and shock the system and all of your NHL bets.
With the 2025/26 National Hockey League season underway, it’s time to look to the future – as in NHL Futures wagering options. Placing future bets in the preseason (or even during the regular season) can result in monster payouts when the victors hoist the Stanley Cup i July 9. With this article we present some tips to help handicappers make profitable future bets when it comes to the fastest game on ice. The early bird definitely catches the worm when it comes to successful NHL futures betting.
NHL Future Betting Strategy & Tips
Although not something we would normally wager the farm on, there is money to made with NHL future bets. Options on who will win the Stanley Cup, plus the Eastern and Western Conferences, are currently the most popular markets. The best time to make future bets are prior to or early into the season, when the odds are still fairly robust and ripe for the picking. Here are some tips and strategies on how to make profitable NHL future bets.
1) Shop for the best NHL future prices
As is the case with any online betting option, future bettors need to shop for the best odds. The price on the Pittsburgh Penguins to with the Cup in 2015-16 opened at 12-1 and grew to 25-1 by Feb. 15, depending on the sportsbook used.
2) Place your bets as early as possible
Top online bookmakers will normally post odds for the Stanley Cup championship shortly after the current winner is crowned. No matter what the sport, the best futures prices are almost always posted at the end of the season.
3) Bet a mix of favorites and underdogs
On 100 unit wagers, current top chalk Chicago (8/1 odds), mixed in with Dallas (12/1) and Montreal (22/1) as longshots would guarantee a minimum 800 unit return if one of them wins the Cup.
4) Watch how the teams start out of the gate
In a league where 14 of 30 teams fail to qualify for the playoffs and the propensity of the three-point shootout and overtime games can leave making up ground a fruitless pursuit, so stumbling out of the gate can prove fatal for an NHL team. If your preseason picks look dicey, add a couple of teams to hedge your bets.
5) Back up your picks during NHL postseason play
Let's say all four of your preseason selections have made it to the final eight. Knowing those teams will bring a minimum 800 unit return you can wager another 400 units on the other four teams to guarantee a profit.
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