It wasn’t that long ago that the Carolina Hurricanes hoisted the Stanley Cup, but the upcoming hockey season already lies just around the corner. The 2026-27 regular season begins this week, meaning there’s no better time than now to take a look at NHL futures and awards markets.
As teams hit the ice, we’re diving into these betting markets to find the best bets and top picks. Here are the latest playoff odds and the best picks and predictions to make or miss the postseason, all via DraftKings Sportsbook.
NHL Playoffs Futures Odds
In the Eastern Conference, here’s a full look at how the odds leaderboard to make or miss the playoffs shakes out. The first number following the team name is their odds to make the postseason, followed by the odds they miss qualifying:
- Carolina Hurricanes (-1100/+700)
- Florida Panthers (-800/+550)
- Tampa Bay Lightning (-390/+295)
- Washington Capitals (-260/+210)
- Montreal Canadiens (-180/+145)
- Toronto Maple Leafs (-140/+110)
- New Jersey Devils (-135/+105)
- Buffalo Sabres (-125/-105)
- Ottawa Senators (+105/-135)
- Philadelphia Flyers (+120/-145)
- Columbus Blue Jackets (+130/-160)
- Pittsburgh Penguins (+195/-240)
- New York Islanders (+220/-275)
- Boston Bruins (+230/-310)
- New York Rangers (+235/-290)
- Detroit Red Wings (+250/-350)
As for the Western Conference, here is the full board to make/miss the playoffs:
- Colorado Avalanche (-1800/+900)
- Vegas Golden Knights (-800/+500)
- Edmonton Oilers (-1100/+650)
- Minnesota Wild (-475/+350)
- Dallas Stars (-450/+340)
- Los Angeles Kings (-185/+150)
- Utah Mammoth (-185/+150)
- San Jose Sharks (-150/+120)
- Anaheim Ducks (-150/+120)
- St. Louis Blues (+200/-280)
- Winnipeg Jets (+230/-320)
- Nashville Predators (+250/-320)
- Chicago Blackhawks (+500/-700)
- Seattle Kraken (+500/-800)
- Calgary Flames (+850/-1600)
- Vancouver Canucks (+1000/-2000)
NHL Playoffs Futures Picks, Best Bets
Los Angeles Kings to miss the playoffs (+150)
The odds here aren’t anything wild at +150, but if there’s a Western Conference team that I think regresses some this year, it’s probably the Kings. The crux of the argument here is that they weren’t particularly good last season – they finished with 90 points and had an NHL-high 20 overtime losses. They got into a ton of close games and lacked much in the way of offense, finishing fourth-to-last in scoring with 220 GF and underperfoming an xGF of 248.96. Sure, some of those OT losses could have flipped the other way, in which case perhaps we’d be talking about them differently. However, they’re relying on a bunch of aging additions to bolster the offense in a 39-year-old Mats Zuccarello and 41-year-old Corey Perry, plus Erik Haula and Scott Laughton, who are in their early 30s. The defense should still be quite good as in the past, but even Darcy Kuemper’s numbers dipped a little in net last year. In a Pacific Division with young up-and-comers like the Sharks and Ducks alongside the Golden Knights and Oilers, I think Los Angeles could be left on the outside of the playoff picture.
San Jose Sharks to make the playoffs (-150)
Is there better value on the board than this bet on the Sharks to make the playoffs? There is, but I also just want a piece of this team moving forward. It’s tough not to love this batch of young talent on an up-and-coming roster that’s already flirted with a playoff appearance. Heading into the final couple of weeks last season, San Jose was still in the running for a postseason berth – in an admittedly weak Pacific Division – largely on the back of a Hart-caliber campaign from Macklin Celebrini. Now, the 20-year-old is coming off 115 points and has just been earned the “C’ on his sweater as the franchise’s newest captain. This offseason was a busy one for the club, but that’s no shock after posting 86 points with a 39-35-8 record last year and playing some electric hockey. William Eklund was an unfortunate casualty via trade, but the Sharks added veterans in forward Mason Marchment and defensemen Darnell Nurse and Jacob Trouba. They’re not the most exciting pieces, though. The real prize was Ivar Stenberg, who was drafted No. 2 overall and looks ready to contribute at the NHL level following a preseason hat trick. The offense should be a high-flying one, so even a modest improvement on defense could mean a playoff appearance.
Buffalo Sabres to make the playoffs (-125)
Last season, the Sabres started the campaign with an 11-14-4 record and the third-fewest points in the league up until December 9, a terrible result through two-ish months of hockey. Why the seemingly arbitrary date, you may ask? Well, that’s just because they went 39-9-5 with an NHL-best 83 points from that date onward, a surge which was started by tying the franchise record with 10 straight wins heading into New Year’s Day. Over that span, Buffalo ranked third in GF and second in GA per game, playing some of the best two-way hockey in the sport. The club made the Stanley Cup Playoff for the first time since 2011 and won their first division title with 109 points in a strong Atlantic. They made it two rounds deep in the postseason, a smashing success given the team’s history over the last decade. Having tasted success, they should be hungry to return for seconds. The Sabres did lose Alex Tuch this offseason and they could find themselves competing for a Wild Card berth rather than the division since the Panthers and Maple Leafs are expected to be back in the mix alongside the Lightning and Canadiens, but still – we saw the formula for a quality team last season and got younger and faster over the offseason while keeping the key pieces of this core intact.
