NHL & NBA Futures Betting Outlook Through Round 1

NHL

Round 1 of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs officially wrapped up last night, as the Montreal Canadiens won a tightly contested Game 7 in Tampa Bay last evening. Technically, the 2nd round of the Playoffs has already begun, as the Flyers vs. Hurricanes, and Wild vs. Avalanche series have already gotten underway over the weekend, but now we can look at Round 2 holistically, and see how each team fares when it comes to winning their conference, and ultimately winning the Stanley Cup.

Let’s look at each division and see what each team’s odds are to win, then see what each team’s odds are to win the Cup.

Eastern Conference Odds (per DraftKings):

Western Conference Odds (per DraftKings):

Stanley Cup Champion Odds (per DraftKings):

As you can see from the current odds, Colorado and Carolina are far and away the heavy favorites out of their respective sides. Obviously, it’s a little bit skewed, given they both already have a win under their belt in the second round, but these teams have been the most consistent teams throughout the playoffs in their respective conferences.

There’s currently a ton of value to be found for some of the teams below Colorado and Carolina, who still have a really solid chance at making a run at the Cup. It will be fascinating to continue following this as Round 2 continues and see where the teams ultimately stack up once we get to the conference championship.

NBA

Similarly to the NHL Playoffs, the NBA Playoffs Round 1 wrapped up last night, as we had 2 Game 7s, both coming out of the Eastern Conference. We saw Detroit close out a stressful series in convincing fashion, while the Cavaliers found a way to get past the Toronto Raptors.

Unlike the NHL Playoffs, we have not seen any second-round action get underway, so the odds won’t be skewed at this point, as second-round action officially gets underway this evening. Like we did for the NHL, let’s dive into each team’s odds to win their respective conference, and ultimately win the NBA Finals.

Eastern Conference Odds (per DraftKings):

Western Conference Odds (per DraftKings):

Finals Champion Odds (per DraftKings):

The outlook on the Playoffs looks a little bit different in the NBA vs. the NHL, especially in the Eastern Conference, as it seems wide open on that side. The Western Conference is certainly a lot top-heavier with how dominant both the Thunder and Spurs can be, and it ultimately feels like that is what the Western Conference Finals will be.

Those 2 teams are also big-time frontrunners for the Finals as well, as the teams left in the Eastern Conference don’t have quite as much depth as OKC or San Antonio. I will be intrigued to see if the 2 bottom teams in the West can make any noise in Round 2, and if the winner of the Eastern Conference can compete come Finals time.