NHL Futures: 2021 Eastern Conference Odds and Picks

Today, we’re going to analyze the 2021 NHL Eastern Conference futures odds. I’m also going to share my best bets for this market. There are a couple teams offering great value.

Last month, we took a look at the early 2021 NHL Stanley Cup odds.

The Tampa Bay Lightning ended up winning the Eastern Conference in 2020 and then they went on to defeat the Dallas Stars in the Stanley Cup. TB are favored to repeat as champions in the East.


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You can bet on NHL futures at BetOnline or America’s Bookie all season.

Favorites to Win the 2021 NHL Eastern Conference

As I just mentioned, the Lightning are favored to win the East and their odds are at +400.

The two other teams paying less than 10/1 odds are the Boston Bruins (+750) and Toronto Maple Leafs (+900). The Lightning and Bruins finished atop the East during the 2019-20 regular season.

Toronto are always going to have depressed NHL futures odds because they get so much action from Canadian NHL bettors, but could this be the year they win the Eastern Conference?

The Leafs have had an active off-season already by making some nice moves to not only add some veteran leadership and grit to the line-up, but also some more goal scoring.

Toronto have already signed Joe Thornton, Wayne Simmonds, Jimmy Vesey and Zach Bogosian on one-year contracts. They also signed TJ Brodie to a four-year deal to bolster the defense.

Out of the three favorites in the Eastern Conference, the Leafs at 9/1 odds interests me the most, but you could likely wait until the first Leafs losing streak to get a better price on them.

Best Bet: Toronto Maple Leafs to Win the East (+900)


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Longshots to win the 2021 NHL Eastern Conference

Apart from the three teams mentioned previously, every other team is paying 10/1 odds or higher.

The Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals are all paying 10/1 odds. The Capitals signed Justin Schultz and made some noise when they also signed Henrik Lundqvist.

If the Flyers can add a piece or two, they could become top contenders, but the off-season has been quiet thus far. However, they gained a lot of experience this season and have no cap space issues.

Could the New York Islanders (+1200) or Carolina Hurricanes (+1400) win the East?

The Islanders have to resign Mathew Barzal, which looks like it’ll get done. If they can do that and limit what they have to get rid of, they could take an extra step forward in 2020-21.

Tampa Bay just needed six games to eliminate the Islanders in the 2020 Eastern Conference Final.

Best Bet: New York Islanders to Win the East (+1200)


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Can a Bottom Feeder Win the NHL Eastern Conference in 2021?

The Buffalo Sabres, New Jersey Devils, Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings all finished with less than 70 regular season points during the shortened 2019-20 NHL season.

With a flat cap and limited revenue because of COVID-19, a lot of teams are finding themselves in big trouble heading into the 2020-21 season, so maybe a big underdog can steal the East.

However, I wouldn’t bank on it.

2021 NHL Eastern Conference Futures Odds

Here are the NHL futures odds for every team in the East to win the conference in 2021.

Tampa Bay Lightning (+400)

Boston Bruins (+750)

Toronto Maple Leafs (+900)

Philadelphia Flyers (+1000)

Pittsburgh Penguins (+1000)

Washington Capitals (+1000)

New York Islanders (+1200)

Carolina Hurricanes (+1400)

New York Rangers (+1400)

Montreal Canadiens (+1800)

Columbus Blue Jackets (+2500)

Florida Panthers (+2500)

New Jersey Devils (+2800)

Buffalo Sabres (+3300)

Ottawa Senators (+5000)

Detroit Red Wings (+8000)