Edmonton Oilers fans looking to place a Stanley Cup bet on their team will not be getting as big of a payout as they might expect at the moment.
After coming within a single victory of taking home the Stanley Cup last season, a flurry of offseason activity has catapulted the Oilers into having the best odds in the entire NHL to win it all next season.
FanDuel, a popular sports betting site, has the Oilers sitting at +850 to take home the 2025 Stanley Cup, ahead of the defending champion Florida Panthers (+950) and the next-best Canadian team, the Toronto Maple Leafs (+1500).
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FanDuel is a big fan of the offseason the Oilers have had thus far. Interim GM Jeff Jackson has done an incredible job shoring up the team’s shortcomings up front. It seems he noticed Edmonton’s lack of scoring early on in the Stanley Cup Final and brought in players like Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson to add support.
He also took note of how well the bottom six performed when it mattered most, bringing back all of Adam Henrique, Connor Brown, Mattias Janmark, and Corey Perry on cheap and solid deals. All in all, the Oilers might have the most dangerous forward group in the entire league after all these additions.
The only area that hasn’t been improved is on the backend and in goal. The defence is largely the same minus Vincent Desharnais, who signed with the Vancouver Canucks, and the right side could use an upgrade besides Darnell Nurse. This, however, is reportedly an area that the team is actively looking to upgrade.
Stuart Skinner had some iffy moments in the postseason as the Oilers starter but came up big in a couple of key moments down the stretch. While Calvin Pickard may not be the greatest backup option, his pinch-hitting in the second round against the Canucks secured him another shot at the job next season.
The Panthers were able to finish the job a year after they got bounced in the Stanley Cup Final and now it will be up to the Oilers to secure the win next season.