NHL odds, picks, best bet for Stanley Cup Playoffs…

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The Edmonton Oilers didn’t win the Pacific Division, but they might have landed in the proper spot in the Western Conference playoff image regardless.

After an up-and-down season, the Oilers completed as the No. 2 seed in the Pacific behind Vegas, which means they may take on the Anaheim Ducks in Round 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Anaheim, by just about every metric, grades out as the worst workforce in the 16-team area. And they’re about as tailor-made a matchup for the Oilers as you possibly can draw up.

This is the Stanley Cup Playoffs, so something can occur, but Anaheim could possibly be sitting Ducks in this best-of-7 sequence.

The oddsmakers consider that to be the case. Edmonton is a chunky -210 favourite to advance to Round 2, even though only one level separated these two groups after the common season.

How are the chances so lopsided if these groups had been neck and neck after 82 video games? It’s all about the story of the tape.

Oilers vs. Ducks Game 1, sequence odds, prediction

Before getting into the numbers, the first edge that Edmonton owns in this sequence is expertise. Anaheim has a secure of veterans who have been on long playoff runs, but this is the first playoff berth for the franchise since 2018, and none of the gamers that make up their dynamic younger core have performed in the postseason.

Their first style will come against a workforce that is still largely intact after back-to-back journeys to the Stanley Cup Final.

On the ice, the Oilers own edges all over the rink, most notably on protection.

While Edmonton has trended in the proper direction defensively down the stretch, the Ducks have been a nightmare in their own zone all season. Only three groups surrendered more targets than Anaheim in 2025-26, and the Ducks also completed twenty eighth in stopping high-danger scoring possibilities and twenty fifth in anticipated targets against.

Against weaker groups in the tender Western Conference, the Ducks had been ready to rating their method out of bother, but that received’t jive against the Oilers, who have actually tightened issues up these days. Edmonton ranks fifth in the NHL in high-danger scoring possibilities against in its last 25 video games.

Anaheim’s defensive ineptitude also figures to wipe out the one edge they’d in the story of the tape, which was goaltending. Lukas Dostal wasn’t at his best this season, but you’d make him the A-side of this matchup against Connor Ingram and Tristan Jarry. Unfortunately, Dostal’s workload figures to be fairly tough, which ought to negate any benefit he would carry in this sequence.

Betting on the NHL?

Special groups will also be a huge concern for the Ducks, as they completed the common season with the sixth-worst penalty kill and Tenth-worst energy play. Edmonton, as is custom, led the league with a energy play that clicked at better than 30 p.c.

Already this handicap is getting lopsided, and we haven’t even talked about Connor McDavid yet. After a comparatively sluggish first half of the marketing campaign, McDavid lit up the league down the stretch, tallying 42 factors in 24 video games after the Olympics, simply profitable the Art Ross Trophy with 138 factors.

Anaheim Ducks gamers Beckett Sennecke (45), Troy Terry (19), Leo Carlsson (91), and Mikael Granlund (64) discussing a face-off. Matt Blewett-Imagn Images

McDavid did the bulk of that injury without Leon Draisaitl, who has been on the shelf for the last month. The German celebrity must be prepared to go by Game 2 at the latest.

Without an reply for McDavid, nor the Oilers’ energy play, it’s onerous to see Anaheim maintaining up in this sequence. And while -210 is a powerful price to abdomen given Edmonton’s query marks in purpose, I do suppose that there are other methods to discover worth on this sequence. One such avenue is backing the Oilers to win the sequence by at least three video games, which is at present priced at +205 at DraftKings.

But my favourite play for this sequence is to back Evan Bouchard to lead this sequence in targets at 30/1. An offensive pressure from the blueline, Bouchard must be champing at the bit to take on Anaheim’s woeful penalty kill, and he ought to have lots of space to operate with the Ducks focusing on containing McDavid and Draisaitl.

The Plays: Edmonton -2.5 video games (+205) | Evan Bouchard most targets in sequence (30/1, DraftKings)

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Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports activities bettor with 10 years of expertise in the playing industry. He loves utilizing recreation idea to help punters win bracket swimming pools, discover long pictures, and be taught how to beat the market in mainstream and area of interest sports activities.

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