3 Best Bets to Win Stanley Cup (Panthers are Best Team in NHL)

If you want to place some NHL futures before we enter the final stretch of the season, now is the time to do it. The true contenders are starting to separate themselves from the pack so there are a handful of teams whose odds will only get shorter as we enter the final third of the 2023-24 campaign.

If you want to place a few Stanley Cup bets, I'm here to help you out. I'm going to break down three teams you should wager on it win it all. I'll stay away from the top two teams on the odds list, the Avalanche and Oilers, and focus on some other teams further down the odds list, starting with the team I think is the best in the NHL, the Florida Panthers.

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Despite being the third team on the odds list behind the Oilers and Avalanche, I think the Panthers are the best team in the NHL. They're fresh off a Cinderella run last season but now their metrics are leagues above where they were last season. Most importantly, they're playing some great hockey in their own end, which is a huge difference from recent iterations of this team which was all offense and no defense.

In fact, over their last 25 games the Panthers lead the entire NHL in 5-on-5 expected goals against per 60 minutes at 2.02.

As a cherry on top, they're great on special teams too, sporting a top 6 power play and penalty kill unit. The Rangers and Hurricanes are the only other two teams who rank inside the top six in both power play and penalty kill.

Speaking of teams who play great defensively, the Dallas Stars are right behind the Panthers in 5-on-5 expected goals against over their last 25 games at 2.19. With that being said, the key for the Stars to go on a run is they need Jake Oettinger to get locked in.

The 25-year old is having the worst season of his young career, sporting a .904 save percentage. That's not a terrible mark, but that's not good enough to win a Cup. But, if he can get hot at the right time, the Stars are going to be a tough team to beat in a seven-game series.

One thing working in the Stars' favor is their shooting has been out of this world. As of writing this article, they're second in the NHL in shooting percentage over their last 25 games at 12.39%. Any team that can shoot that well has a chance to go on a run.

The Jets and the Canucks are two teams out of the Western Conference who are having surprisingly hot seasons, but I think the Jets' are playing a lot more sustainable style of hockey. The Canucks are relying solely on sharp shooting, while the Jets have been a below average shooting team but are still racking up wins with great play between the blue lines.

Over the last 25 games, the Jets are third in the NHL in 5-on-5 expected goal differential behind only the Panthers and Oilers. They also have arguably the best goaltender in the NHL in Connor Hellebuyck who has an eye-popping save percentage of .927. As we've seen time and time again, a hot goalie can drag a team to a Stanley Cup.

In my opinion, the Jets are the only team left on the odds list with fantastic value to win the Stanley Cup.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

You can check out all of Iain's bets here!