NHL Conference Finals Predictions | The Stanley Cup Playoffs have a unique feature that other major North American pro sports leagues, including the NBA and Major League Baseball, have not adopted.
In the NBA, for example, division titles are basically insignificant – just a banner to hang from the arena rafters.
In the NHL, though, divisions are more important. Each conference gets eight teams in the playoffs – the first, second, and third-place teams from each division, as well as the two teams with the next best records.
The division winners face the wild-card teams in the first round, while the second- and third-place team in each division face off.
Then if the division winner advances, that team will face the winner of the second- and third-place teams from their own division.
So unless a wild-card team from the other division knocks off a division champ in the first round, teams don’t see anyone from the other division until the conference final.
Let’s take a look at the current rankings in each division as well as some projections about which teams will advance to the East and West finals.
If you like to include NHL futures in your sports betting, this article is a must-read.
NHL Conference Finals Predictions | NHL Week 7
STANDINGS CHECK 🧐
— NHL (@NHL) November 21, 2024
Which team has surprised you the most so far this season? pic.twitter.com/GnVsCsljWU
NHL Conference Finals Predictions: Possible Finals
Atlantic Division
The Florida Panthers have won two Atlantic Division crowns in the last three years. They brought Sam Reinhart and his 50-goal potential back to a roster that was already loaded. The Maple Leafs have a young goalie in Joseph Wol, but so far he has more than held his own in net. The Bruins added Elias Lindholm, who is emerging as a legit #1 center. Tampa Bay is negotiating life without Steven Stamkos but added Jake Guentzel to help add that production back. The Ottawa Senators added Linus Ullmark in goal, but it’s hard to see them cracking the top four in this division, at least for now.
Metropolitan Division
The New Jersey Devils have an elite goalie in Jakob Markstrom and a solid coach in Sheldon Keefe. Markstrom should solve the problems that kept the Devils out of the playoffs a year ago, and the talented youth on this roster should flourish once again. Carolina’s ability to play well after all of the free-agent losses in the off-season – Teuvo Teravainen, Brady Skjei, Brett Pesce, and Guentzel – is a testament to the motivational abilities of coach Rod Brind’Amour. The New York Rangers still have one of the best goalies in the game in Igor Shesterkin, and their scoring talent basically all returned from a year ago.
After those three teams, it will be Washington, Pittsburgh and the Islanders clamoring for a wild-card position. Pittsburgh and Washington are getting even older and haven’t added much in the way of the next elite generation. The Islanders basically stood pat with a team that couldn’t get into the postseason a year ago. Philadelphia has a new, exciting rookie in Matvei Michkov, but overall the infusion of talent won’t be enough for them to crack the top three.
^Central Division
Winnipeg’s red-hot start continues as they are 16-3-0 with a +34 goal differential. As has been the case the last few seasons, they have all kinds of speed and talent up front, and their defending is well above average. Their goalie, Connor Hellebuyck, has the ability to stand on his head and steal games. He also has the ability to give up five goals. The Jets will go as far as he takes them. Minnesota has a lot of questions in net, but those questions have largely been answered so far. If things change once the pressure ramps up in the postseason, then the Wild will regress again.
Dallas and Colorado should rise to the top in this division again this year. Both teams have plenty of elite talent, and the Stars signed Jake Oettinger to the hefty contract that his netminding earned him. Nashville added a ton of top talent – Steven Stamkos, Brady Skjei and Jonathan Marchessault – but we’re still waiting for all of that talent to mesh together. Can Utah (formerly Arizona) get to the playoffs? They did add Mikhail Sergachev to get a legit #1 defenseman. They’re right on the edge of the postseason line now.
^Pacific Division
Seriously. How have the Edmonton Oilers failed to win this division with both Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid on their roster? They might have the two best scorers in hockey on one team. They did make it to the Cup Finals last year before falling short. Vancouver is the defending division champion thanks to Quinn Hughes’ terrific play on the blue line. Thatcher Demko in net is still an adventure, at least for now. Vegas and Los Angeles both regressed in the off-season; the Kings had to say good-bye to Pierre-Luc Dubois, but they added Darcy Kuemper, who is kind of a solution in net.
Vegas doesn’t have depth in their forward group. Seattle is still a group of lunch-pail players without a star, even with Brandon Montour and Chandler Stephenson coming to town. Calgary is hoping that their home-grown talent can solve their goaltender issues after trading Markstrom away. Anaheim is fun to watch with such youngsters as Cutter Gauthier, Mason MacTavish and Leo Carlsson. San Jose also has a cool youth movement in Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith. Neither of those teams has the depth or defense to rise in this division, though.
^NHL Conference Finals Predictions | West Final Matchups
Dallas-Vegas
These two teams have put together some epic postseason showdowns in the past. Dallas got past Vegas to the Stanley Cup Final in front of an empty Canadian arena during that weird COVID-19 playoff season. Vegas has returned the favor to Dallas in the past as well. The Golden Knights have been solid ever since entering the NHL even though they have never really had a big star. Dallas has depth, talent and speed, and they’ve learned how to win.
Winnipeg-Edmonton
An all-Canadian West final would be the talk of the country. This would mean that Connor Hellebuyck has finally put together a solid postseason and the players in front of him haven’t gotten nervous from the pressure. It would also mean that McDavid and Draisaitl put together two consistent postseasons in a row.
Minnesota-Calgary
Sometimes young, fast teams with iffy goaltending catch fire and score in bunches. If these teams make it to the West final, then that means there were a lot of 6-4 games along the way for both teams. If this series actually happens and goes seven games, you might see 70 goals combined – a video game come to life.
Colorado-Los Angeles
The Avalanche are always a tough out in the playoffs. When the Kings have made deep playoff runs, it’s usually come about due to leveraging lucky bounces and above-expected goaltender play. If Darcy Kuemper can catch fire, then the clunky journeyman reputation will finally be left behind.
^A very Super 16. 🫡
— NHL (@NHL) November 21, 2024
See the full list from @NHLdotcom: https://t.co/38cpOSysRG
Presented by @Enterprise pic.twitter.com/VOAgSKXuwH
NHL Conference Finals Predictions | East Final Matchups
Toronto-N.Y. Rangers
Auston Matthews and the Maple Leafs have been underperforming in the postseason for years. With the toxic stench of the Mike Babcock era finally cleared from the locker room, there’s really on reason why this fast, dangerous group of scorers can’t make a deep run. Igor Shesterkin is good enough to get three rounds deep in the playoffs all by himself, so it’s time for the Rangers’ offense to get that good as well.
Tampa Bay-Carolina
This pair of teams both lost a lot of their front-line talent in the off-season, and they’re both having to make it work by building new chemistry on the fly. Carolina, so far, is way ahead of expectations, while the Lightning are slogging along like we thought – but they still have the veteran experience to figure things out and make a run.
Boston-Washington
David Pastrnak and Alexei Ovechkin in an East final? That would be must-see television as Ovechkin would definitely have to turn back the clock to make this happen. The Bruins should be able to score goals with anyone, and the Caps definitely have the veteran experience. But as the season wears on, can the Capitals keep those engines running? Will Boston figure out how to play defense on a regular basis?
Florida-New Jersey
The Devils will definitely have to swallow that indignity from last year’s late collapse and push through to the playoffs to advance in a high-octane Metropolitan Division. The Panthers have the talent up front and on the blue line, and their goaltending situation remains well above average.
^Previous Betting News | Xbet News Archive
2024 NHL Conference Finals Matchups
The Boston Bruins took 2-0 and 3-1 series leads against the Toronto Maple Leafs in their NHL Eastern Conference quarterfinal series, but then the Leafs roared back despite not having Auston Matthews, tying the series at three games apiece and pushing Game 7 into overtime. However, it took the Bruins just 1:54 of overtime to get a goal from David Pastrnak, who took the feed from Hampus Lindholm to end the series. Lindholm also tied the game in regulation, and Jeremy Swayman had 30 saves as the Bruins narrowly avoided losing their second consecutive first-round series after taking a 3-1 series lead. Let’s look at the updated Stanley Cup Playoffs bracket and go over our sports betting thoughts about each second-round series.
NHL Stanley Cup Odds: Eastern and Western Conference Finals Predictions
Dallas Stars vs Colorado Avalanche
The Stars needed seven games to oust the Vegas Golden Knights while the Avalanche sent the Winnipeg Jets home after five games. The Stars are slightly favored going into this series. They come in having averaaged just 2.0 goals per game over their last 10 games, going 6-4. They have permitted only 18 goals during those same contests. However, the Avalanche have scored 4.5 goals per contest in their last ten, posting a 6-3-1 mark in those contests, while permitting 3.5. The Stars need to up their offense if they’re going to keep up with the Avalanche in this series. Jake Oettinger has been terrific for the Stars so far in net. As well as the Stars played this season, they’re legitimate favorites.
NHL Pick: Stars in six
Vancouver Canucks vs Edmonton Oilers
The Canucks won all four of their regular-season meetings with the Oilers, which included an 8-1 shellacking on Opening Night as well as a 6-2 beating. The other games (4-3 and 3-1) also featured the Canucks pouring on the offense. Three of those losses did come in the early part of the season, when the Oilers were really struggling on both ends of the ice. The Oilers are actually the favorites to win this series due to injuries to Thatcher Demko. The Oilers have both Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid humming on offense. In these playoffs, the Oilers lead the NHL on both the penalty kill (100%) and the power play. Even so, I’m actually going with the value here as the Canucks rolled in the first round, even without Demko in net.
NHL Pick: Canucks in seven
Florida Panthers vs Boston Bruins
The Bruins are in the second round of the playoffs for the first time in three years, and they head to Florida without home-ice advantage. However, they have won four of their last six road postseason games, including Games 3 and 4 down at Florida a year ago. They’ve actually struggled more at home, posting a 3-5 home playoff record in their last eight games at TD Garden. The Panthers have a Vezina Trophy finalist in goal, in Sergei Bobrovsky, and they have elite talent on their scoring lines and the blue line. Their run to the Stanley Cup Final last year was a surprise. This time around, it wouldn’t be a surprise. The Bruins need to settle down and play with confidence if they want to get past the Panthers this time.
NHL Pick: Panthers in seven
N.Y. Rangers vs Carolina Hurricanes (Rangers lead, 1-0)
This is the second time the Blueshirts and the Hurricanes have met in the second round in the last three years. The Hurricanes only needed five games to send the N.Y. Islanders home in the first round, and the Rangers swept Washington out. The Rangers beat Carolina two out of three times during the regular season. Igor Shesterkin posted a minuscule 1.75 GAA in the first round, as well as a .931 save percentage, but the Caps didn’t test him as much as the Hurricanes will. Frederik Andersen went 9-1-0 in net for the Hurricanes after returning from blood clotting issues, but in the first round, he permitted a 2.25 GAA and had a .912 save percentage in the first round.
NHL Pick: Rangers in six
Updated NHL Odds Reveal Tight Race for the Stanley Cup
- Edmonton Oilers +420
- Florida Panthers +460
- Dallas Stars +520
- N.Y. Rangers +550
- Carolina Hurricanes +580
- Colorado Avalanche +630
- Boston Bruins +1075
- Vancouver Canucks +1650
Bet NHL Finals Today
Xbet Betting Lines for the Game
NHL Conference Finals Predictions
Love betting on hockey, like in the NHL games? | Xbet Sportsbook offers up to date NHL betting Odds for all Regular Season, Playoffs, and Stanley Cup games.
