The 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs are kicking off on Saturday with Western Conference action. The St. Louis Blues, a surprise entrant, will visit the Winnipeg Jets, who earned the Presidents` Trophy. St. Louis surged late in the season, winning 12 straight games and gaining points in 14 of their last 16 games (13-2-1) to secure the final wild-card spot in the West.
In another Saturday game, the Dallas Stars will host the Colorado Avalanche. These Central Division rivals previously clashed in the second round of the last playoffs, where the Stars eliminated the Avalanche in six games.
Three more first-round series will begin on Sunday, and two more on Monday. The Florida Panthers, the current Stanley Cup champions, will start their title defense against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday. This is the second year in a row for the `Battle of Florida` in the first round, with the Panthers winning last year in five games.
Another recurring matchup is in the West, featuring the Los Angeles Kings and Edmonton Oilers. These Pacific Division teams will face off in the first round for the fourth consecutive postseason, starting in Los Angeles on Monday. Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals will host the Montreal Canadiens for their series opener.
The remaining Western Conference series will see the Minnesota Wild play against the Vegas Golden Knights, starting Sunday in Las Vegas. Also on Sunday, the New Jersey Devils will visit the Carolina Hurricanes for their first game, and the `Battle of Ontario` will begin in Toronto with the Maple Leafs hosting the Ottawa Senators.
Winnipeg and Vegas are strongly favored to win their respective series in the West, with the Jets around -210 odds and the Golden Knights at -235 or higher at most betting sites. Oddsmakers also predict three of the four Eastern Conference series to be one-sided, favoring Carolina, Washington, and Toronto. Some betting sites list the Hurricanes at -300 or higher, while the Capitals are around -275.
Here are some teams that offer good value when considering bets on first-round series victories.
Top Series Bets
Dallas Stars (+140)
While the Stars have a losing record in postseason games against the Avalanche and a mixed record in the 2024-25 season series, Dallas has an advantage in goal with Jake Oettinger, who ranked third in the NHL with 36 wins and is a potential Vezina Trophy finalist. They also have former Avalanche player Mikko Rantanen, a right wing who has scored 30+ goals for five seasons in a row. Despite a potential injury to Jason Robertson, their leading scorer, the Stars still have strong offensive players like Wyatt Johnston, Matt Duchene, Roope Hintz, and others who can challenge Avalanche goalie Mackenzie Blackwood and help Dallas advance.
Los Angeles Kings (+115)
The Kings have historically struggled against the Oilers in the playoffs, losing eight of ten series, including the last six. However, this time Los Angeles has home-ice advantage and were the NHL`s best home team in 2024-25, with an impressive 31-5-4 record at home. The Kings also have a strong goalie in Darcy Kuemper, who led Colorado to a championship in 2022 and was among the league leaders in goals-against average, save percentage, and shutouts. Even with Edmonton`s star players Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, this could be the year the Kings break their playoff drought against the Oilers.
Tampa Bay Lightning (-102)
Despite Sergei Bobrovsky`s strong performance against Andrei Vasilevskiy last postseason, it`s hard to bet against a Tampa Bay team with two 40-goal scorers: Brayden Point and Jake Guentzel. The Lightning also feature Nikita Kucherov, who won his third Art Ross Trophy and has a history of high playoff scoring. Brandon Hagel and Anthony Cirelli also had career-best goal-scoring seasons. While the Panthers are the defending champions and may have Matthew Tkachuk back, his recent injury might hinder his impact, giving the Lightning a good chance to win this series.
