Morning Coffee: A first look at FanDuel’s odds for the Stanley Cup Final

​The Edmonton Oilers are headed back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2006.

Next up, the five-time champion Oilers will attempt to secure their first Stanley Cup win since 1990.

For the second consecutive round, Edmonton opened as the underdog to win the series at FanDuel.

The Florida Panthers are currently -128 to win their first Stanley Cup in franchise history.

It’s just the sixth time in the expansion era that a team has reached the Stanley Cup Final after losing in the Final the previous year.

The last two teams to do it went on to win it all.

Meanwhile, the Oilers are +106 to win the Stanley Cup.

After proving their doubters wrong as an underdog against the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final, Connor McDavid and company get another opportunity to prove they are being underestimated on the game’s biggest stage.

This time around, hockey’s ultimate prize is on the line.

This is the Morning Coffee for Monday, June 3rd, 2024.

A First Look At FanDuel’s Odds For The Stanley Cup Final

The Oilers entered the 2024 NHL regular season as the fourth choice to win the Stanley Cup at FanDuel at +1100.

Only the Colorado Avalanche (+850), Carolina Hurricanes (+900), and the New Jersey Devils (+1000) had shorter odds to win it all.

At the time, the Panthers could be found at +2000 as the 11th choice to win the Stanley Cup at FanDuel.

Fast-forward six months later, and it was Florida that entered the postseason as the second choice to win it all at FanDuel at +700.

Edmonton was the fourth choice in that market at +850.

After taking care of business against the Los Angeles Kings in the first round, the Oilers went the distance against the Vancouver Canucks and won that second round series in seven games.

The Stars were the favourite to win the Western Conference Final before Game 1 and then again after Dallas took a 2-1 series lead.

Trailing 2-1 in the series, Edmonton was +215 to win the Western Conference Final and +490 to win the Stanley Cup.

The Oilers went on to outscore the Stars 10-4 while stringing together three straight wins in their most impressive stretch of the postseason.

There’s no doubt that McDavid and company are playing their best hockey entering the Stanley Cup Final.

Despite their dominance over Dallas to close out the series, Edmonton opened +105 to win the Stanley Cup at FanDuel.

Florida opened as the favourite at -126.

That number has ticked slightly in favour of the Eastern Conference champions as the Panthers are -128 to win it all this morning at FanDuel.

Since 2012, the betting underdog entering the Stanley Cup Final has gone on to win it all twice.

The Washington Capitals upset the Vegas Golden Knights in five games in 2018.

Then in 2019, the St. Louis Blues beat the Boston Bruins in seven games.

The Capitals and Blues both won it all with longer odds than Edmonton’s current odds.

Meanwhile, when the postseason started, FanDuel had a Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup at +280.

An American team to win it all was -390.

The latter number translates to a 79.6 per cent implied probability.

The Oilers have an opportunity to become the first team from Canada to win the Stanley Cup since the Montreal Canadiens did it in 1993.

Considering it’s the longest Stanley Cup drought for a Canadian team in NHL history, some would say that this country is due for a winner.

A FanDuel Best Bet For The 2024 NFL Season

With a few days to go before the start of the Stanley Cup Final and NBA Finals, there will be plenty of time for football talk this week.

We are exactly 94 days away from the start of the 2024 NFL season.

The bad news is that we must still wait three months and two days before the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens kick off.

The good news is that we will be able to watch a ton of football on TSN beginning this Thursday night, when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers host the Montreal Alouettes in the 2024 CFL season opener.

FanDuel already has lines out for every Week 1 game.

They also have a long list of team futures and season-long player props on site right now.

If you’re looking for an edge betting on the CFL, make sure you tune in to the CFL Betting Preview Show Powered by FanDuel on Tuesday night.

Davis Sanchez, Milt Stegal and Aaron Korolnek will give us their insights and analysis, including their Grey Cup picks.

In the meantime, it seems only fitting that I kick off the month of Hune with my second FanDuel Best Bet recommendation for the 2024 NFL season.

In case you missed it, I’ve already locked in a parlay with the Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers to win their respective divisions.

This morning, I’m locking in another division winner bet at plus-money.

According to ESPN Analytics, there is one division with multiple teams that have at least a 40 per cent chance to win it.

That division is the NFC North.

The Dallas Cowboys are the defending champions.

Despite failing to make any major upgrades to their roster this offseason, the Cowboys are co-favourites to win the NFC East once again this upcoming season.

Meanwhile, Davis Sanchez recognized the Philadelphia Eagles as the biggest winner of the NFL offseason after they locked up some key veteran players and upgraded their roster with one of the most impressive draft hauls.

The Eagles are the most complete team in the NFC East.

All things considered I’d give Philly the nod as the best team in its division.

The fact that there hasn’t been a repeat NFC East champion since the Eagles won four straight division titles from 2001-04 is one more reason to fade Dallas.

I’ll lock in the Eagles to win the NFC East at +120 as my second FanDuel Best Bet to consider for the 2024 season.