2025 NHL Playoffs Odds, Predictions and Schedule

NHL teams will begin their quest for Lord Stanley’s Cup after a long and arduous regular season. The Winnipeg Jets emerged as the Presidents Trophy winner finishing with an NHL-best 56-22-4 record. The Jets won the Central Division and will face the St. Louis Blues in their opening round Stanley Cup playoff series.

As we noted before, the Jets are not the favorite to win this year’s Stanley Cup. If you missed any recent hockey news, make sure to check out our NHL blog. Our experts have been going at it all season long providing the best in news, analysis, and predictions.

It’s a long playoff season as the NHL postseason will take us all the way to the beginning of summer in June. There will be plenty of opportunities each and every day to exploit NHL betting markets. To get on the right side of the action, get your daily NHL picks for the postseason from the best handicappers in the business.

Now, let’s take a closer look at the 2024-25 NHL playoffs. We’ll check the schedule and take a look at all of the first-round playoff series.

When Do The NHL Playoffs Start?

The 2024-25 NHL regular season ended on Thursday, April 17. The 2024-25 NHL playoffs start on Saturday, April 19, and could go until June 23. Every single NHL playoff series is a best-of-seven series. If all of them go seven games, a Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals would be held on Monday, June 23.

NHL Playoff Schedule

The following is a breakdown of the NHL Playoffs Schedule:

• April 19-May 4: NHL First-Round
• TBA: NHL Conference semifinals
• TBA: NHL Conference finals
• TBA: NHL Stanley Cup finals

The NHL releases schedules depending upon how long each series takes. These first round series schedules include seven games, if necessary. The second round, or conference semifinals, could start as early as late April.

If a series goes seven games though, that would delay the start of Game 1 in the next round. Follow Scores & Stats to make sure you have your NHL playoff schedules up to date.

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NHL Playoff Bracket

Let’s take a look at the 2025 NHL Playoffs Bracket:

Eastern Conference

• No. 1 Washington Capitals vs. No. 4 Montreal Canadiens
• No. 2 Carolina Hurricanes vs. No. 3 New Jersey Devils
• No. 1 Toronto Maple Leafs vs. No. 4 Ottawa Senators
• No. 2 Tampa Bay Lightning vs. No. 3 Florida Panthers

Western Conference

• No. 1 Winnipeg Jets vs. No. 4 St. Louis Blues
• No. 2 Dallas Stars vs. No. 3 Colorado Avalanche
• No. 1 Vegas Golden Knights vs. No. 4 Minnesota Wild
• No. 2 Los Angeles Kings vs. No. 3 Edmonton Oilers

NHL Playoff Odds

Check out the latest NHL Playoff odds, courtesy of the best sports betting sites:

One look at the NHL odds for the first-round playoff series and you can see there are some heavy favorites. Carolina, Washington, and Vegas are expected to roll in their opening round series.

You may also notice some lower seeds favored against their higher-seeded opponent. Both Dallas and Los Angeles are the No. 2 seed in their respective divisions. They are both underdogs in their opening round playoff series against Colorado and Edmonton, respectively.

Visit Scores & Stats throughout the playoffs for the best insight and playoff analysis as well as the top handicappers in the industry.

NHL Playoffs Eastern Conference Predictions

Check out our NHL predictions for the opening round of the NHL Playoffs in the Eastern Conference:

Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Ottawa Senators

The Toronto Maple Leafs entered as -160 favorites to win Game 1, and with good reason, after the Ottawa Senators swept the regular season series 3-0. The Leafs won the Atlantic Division and finished the season with the fourth-best record in the NHL after going on a five-game winning streak.

With Linus Ullmark as the series’ most seasoned goalie, Ottawa has the advantage in goal, but the Leafs have the advantage up front and in the back end. Anthony Stolarz was outstanding in the final stretch of the regular season, finishing with an 8-0 record and a .950 save percentage.

Toronto’s Auston Matthews scored a career-low 33 goals during the regular season. He did, however, start to pick up steam toward the end of the season, going on a three-game scoring streak to close out the season.

With an average of 3.61 goals per 60 minutes at 5-on-5, the Maple Leafs’ top line of Matthews, Mitch Marner, and Matthew Knies has played some great hockey together, ranking fourth in the NHL among trios with at least 500 minutes of playtime.

Don’t let the regular season fool you. Ottawa will put up a fight, but Toronto is the more seasoned playoff team here. The Senators win a game, maybe two, but the Leafs advance.

Bet: Toronto -200, Toronto -1.5 (-105), Over 5.5 games (-180)

Florida Panthers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

Two of the last four Stanley Cup-winning teams meet in this series. The Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning will face each other in the playoffs for the third time in four seasons. It may be the best yet, considering what we’ve witnessed in recent months.

With home ice and Aaron Ekblad’s injury adding to their side of the ledger, the Lightning have the smallest of advantages in this matchup. The two teams are separated by two in Net Rating. Tampa Bay’s chances are still only 53% despite having a stronger roster, home ice, and a significant injury to their opponent.

During the regular season, Matthew Tkachuk was one of Florida’s key players. He excels in the playoffs. He is among the league’s most dangerous passers, he drives play and exudes an energy that enrages opponents. The problem for Florida is that Tkachuk got hurt during the Four Nations tournament.

Tkachuk’s injury affected the Panthers’ play over the final weeks of the regular season. After the Four Nations, Florida’s scoring rate dropped from 2.55 GF/60 at five-on-five to 1.80. Additionally, the power play’s efficiency decreased from 9.32 GF/60 to 8.15, and Tkachuk’s absence most likely played a part in that decline.

The Lightning have the No. 1 scorer in the NHL in Nikita Kucherov (37G, 121P). They also have guys like Brandon Hagel (35G, 90P), Brayden Point (42G, 82P), and Jake Guentzel (41G, 80P). Goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy finished fourth in the NHL in GAA (2.18) and is good enough to shut down Florida.

Bet: Tampa Bay -105, Florida +1.5 (-250), Over 5.5 (-200)

Washington Capitals vs. Montreal Canadians

Throughout the entire season, the Washington Capitals were the Eastern Conference’s best and most reliable team. The Caps won the Metropolitan Division too. Nevertheless, the Capitals team we saw in the previous 15 games was different from the one we saw in the first 67 games.

Washington took their foot off the gas and skated to a 7-7-1 record in the last month of the season. Conversely, the Canadiens had to work hard to earn a spot in the playoffs, which they accomplished by skating to an 8-4-4 record. Don’t be surprised if the Canadiens surprise Washington, but don’t be surprised if Montreal gets swept.

The Canadiens scored 2.96 goals per game during the first half of the season, but their performance in the second half was far superior to that of the first. The Habs scored 3.15 goals per game on average in their final 26 games of the season. Also, their goalie, Sam Montembeault, will be making his playoff debut.

For Montreal, Nick Suzuki and Lane Hutson were outstanding late in the season. In the last 16 games, Suzuki scored 20 points and Hutson scored 14.

Dylan Strome and Alexander Ovechkin led the Capitals. Strome scored 17 points in his last 15 games, while Ovechkin scored 18 points in his last 14. The Capitals were No. 2 in scoring during the regular season and the Canadiens are going to have issues with that.

Bet: Washington -260, Washington -1.5 (-130), Under 5.5 (+120)

Carolina Hurricanes vs. New Jersey Devils

Before the 2024–25 season, the New Jersey Devils made numerous roster adjustments, including a total makeover of the crease and blue line. Goalie Jacob Markstrom and defensemen Brett Pesce, Brenden Dillon, and Jonathan Kovacevic were all added to the roster. The other significant change was on the bench as Sheldon Keefe was appointed head coach of New Jersey.

In exchange for a more sensible defensive zone structure, the team gave up its previous offense-first strategy. As a result, the Devils’ defense went from 26th in 2023–24 (3.43 goals allowed per game) to fifth this season (2.68 GAA).

The Devils’ offense relied more on offensive zone design and special teams to produce offense than it did with a rush attack. Overall, the outcome was a 42-win season, a 10-point improvement in the standings, and another Stanley Cup playoff berth.

The Devils have excelled at team defense, and Markstrom and Jake Allen have provided them with outstanding goaltending. The Devils’ performance on special teams has also been a major contributor to their success this season. The team placed second in the penalty kill and third in the power play.

The problem for New Jersey is that Carolina is built much the same way. The Hurricanes finished 10th in scoring defense and they were No. 1 on the penalty kill. Carolina is 8-2 SU in the last 10 against New Jersey. The Devils won’t beat the Hurricanes at their own game.

Bet: ML pass, New Jersey +1.5 (-130), Over 5.5 (-180)

NHL Playoffs Western Conference Predictions

Check out our NHL predictions for the opening round of the NHL Playoffs in the Western Conference:

Winnipeg Jets vs. St. Louis Blues

Over the past eight meetings, including four of five since October, the Winnipeg Jets have dominated the St. Louis Blues. Winnipeg, which had the best record in the NHL this season, owned the 2024-25 season series, winning three of the four games.

During the regular season, St. Louis C Robert Thomas was a prolific assist producer. In 62% of his games, including 24 of his final 29 to close out the year, he recorded at least one assist. That’s an absurd 83% hit rate in the final stretch.

Even the Jets, who had one of the league’s top defenses the entire season, found it extremely difficult to stop Thomas, who recorded an assist in each of the four regular-season games.

During 5-on-5 play, St. Louis can produce scoring opportunities and shot attempts with Thomas on the ice. Thomas is also a key to the Blues main power play unit, but Winnipeg has the advantage. They have won, either in regulation or overtime, in eight of the last ten games against St. Louis.

St. Louis just doesn’t match up well with the Jets. Winnipeg is superior on offense as the NHL’s fourth-best scoring team. The Jets were the best defense in the NHL during the regular season holding teams to 2.32 goals per game.

Bet: Winnipeg -225, Winnipeg -1.5 (-110), Over 5.5 (-180)

Colorado Avalanche vs. Dallas Stars

This season, the Avalanche were only 23-17-1 away from home, while the Stars went 28-10-3 at home. Dallas also prevailed 5-3 over the Avs in November in their lone home game against Colorado this regular season. Despite finishing third in the Central Division, one spot below Dallas, the Avalanche are favored to win this series.

The Avalanche won the other two games, both by multiple goals, both in Colorado. Nathan MacKinnon finished the regular season with 116 points (32 goals, 84 assists) in 79 games. In 51 of those 79 games this season, MacKinnon provided at least one assist. That covers each of the three games against the Stars. He will be a handful for a very good Dallas defense.

Dallas lost its last seven games of the regular season. The Stars gave up five or more goals in five of those games. That kind of defense won’t cut it in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Stars finished the regular season seventh in the NHL allowing 2.76 goals per game. If they can continue that against the Avalanche, Dallas has a shot at the upset.

In Colorado’s two wins over Dallas this season, they scored four and six goals. The Avs were the No. 3 scoring team in the league averaging 3.39 goals per game

Bet: Colorado -160, Series Spread pass, Over 5.5 (-190)

Vegas Golden Knights vs. Minnesota Wild

This year’s Western Conference playoff bracket features one of the more interesting matchups. The first-round matchup between the Minnesota Wild and the Vegas Golden Knights will give fans a rematch of the 2021 playoff series.

Vegas advanced past Minnesota in the seven-game series in 2021. Vegas was ultimately too strong, even though the Golden Knights led the series 3-1 before the Wild came roaring back.

Vegas swept the season series against the Wild which is why they are such a heavy favorite in this series. The Golden Knights won the Pacific Division and have the advantage in this series as the home team for Games 1, 2, 5 and 7.

The Wild are lucky to be here, sneaking into the postseason after their last regular season game. Vegas has the better defense, better offense, and the advantage on special teams. This series shouldn’t last long.

Bet: Vegas -260, Series Spread pass, Under 5.5 (+120)

Edmonton Oilers vs. Los Angeles Kings

This season, the Los Angeles Kings enjoyed one of the league’s greatest home-ice advantages. Their home record was 31-6-4, while their away record was 17-19-5.

The Edmonton Oilers are better at home (25-13-3), but they also had a respectable road record (23-16-2). With top defenseman Mattias Ekholm out for the entire series and Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl both recovering from injuries, Edmonton is a little beaten up going into the playoffs.

Don’t be surprised if the Kings find a way to win a few clutch games in this series. The problem for LA is that Edmonton just has way too much firepower, regardless of injuries. Draisaitl scored 52 goals in just 71 games, earning him the Rocket Richard Trophy.

Draisatl returned to the lineup after missing a few games at the end of March. He didn’t play the final seven regular season games in preparation for the playoffs. During a five-game series against the Kings last year, Draisaitl scored five goals overall.

Even though the Kings have one of the league’s most stringent defenses, Draisaitl has scored in 42 of 71 games this season (59%). Edmonton’s offense will be too much for the Kings.

Bet: Edmonton (-130), Series Spread pass, Over 5.5 (-200)