Last season brought a very competitive Central Division, with three teams finishing with 107 points or more. The Dallas Stars finished on top with 113 points, three ahead of the surprising Winnipeg Jets, who finished three points ahead of the Colorado Avalanche.

This season, the Stars remain the favorites, but the Avalanche, Nashville Predators, and Jets are all considered contenders in this competitive division.

Here is a betting preview for the Central Division.

Bet: Central Division Winner Odds

Central Division Betting Preview

Dallas Stars (+202*)

Last season’s Central Division champions lost some key pieces in the offseason, including forward Joe Pavelski and defenceman Chris Tanev, but there is still a strong core that looks like that of a contending team.

The Stars lost some talent, but still look like legit contenders.

Up front, the Stars have established contributors Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz, Wyatt Johnston, Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Matt Duchene and Mason Marchment. Young forwards Logan Stankoven and Mavrick Bourque add more skill to the group and that depth of talent is reason to believe that the Stars are once again contenders. 

There are more questions on the blueline, however. Miro Heiskanen, Thomas Harley and Esa Lindell return and hold down the top of the defensive depth chart. With Tanev, Ryan Suter, and Jani Hakanpää moving on, the Stars replaced them with Matt Dumba, Ilya Lyubushkin and Brendan Smith. Nils Lundkvist is in the mix, too, but this could still be an area in need of improvement.

Dallas has a reliable starting goaltender in Jake Oettinger, though he was not as effective last season as he had been in his previous three campaigns. 

Overall, the Stars are a strong team, though they do not offer great odds considering the quality of competitive teams in the Central division.

Colorado Avalanche (+279*)

The Avalanche are a team with elite talent, yet such uncertainty in spots that it can be difficult to forecast their season.

Beyond their superstar leaders, there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding the Avalanche roster.

Reigning MVP Nathan MacKinnon is one of the premier players in the league and Mikko Rantanen has had back-to-back seasons with more than 100 points. Jonathan Drouin resurrected his career in Colorado and Casey Mittelstadt and Ross Colton provide quality support. 

The issue for the Avalanche is that they are missing several wingers. Captain Gabriel Landeskog has missed the past two seasons and while he seems to be intent on playing this season, there is no set timeline for his return. Valeri Nichushkin is still suspended for violating the terms of the Player Assistance Program. Artturi Lehkonen is injured to start the season, recovering from shoulder surgery. With all of those players healthy, the Avs could be Stanley Cup contenders. If none are healthy, they are probably too thin up front.

On defense, Cale Makar may be the best defenseman on the planet, a brilliant talent who has been a Norris Trophy finalist in each of the past four seasons, winning once. Devon Toews, Samuel Girard and Josh Manson are returnees that provide stability and the Avs have added Erik Brannstrom, Oliver Kylington and Calvin de Haan for blueline depth.

Alexandar Georgiev remains the starter in goal, but Justus Annunen was excellent in limited action last season and could conceivably handle a bigger role if needed.

Bet: Stanley Cup Outright Winner Odds

Nashville Predators (+378*)

Adding big ticket free agent wingers Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault, who combined to score 82 goals last season, makes the Predators a much more viable contender going into the 2024-2025 season.

The additions of Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault could lift the Predators to a new level.

Stamkos and Marchessault join Filip Forsberg, Ryan O’Reilly, Gustav Nyquist, Tommy Novak, Luke Evangelista and Colton Sissons in what is now a formidable forward group. Will they score enough to be a bona fide contender? They should have that kind of firepower.

The Predators also brought in a high-priced free agent defenceman, adding Brady Skjei from Carolina. Skjei joins Roman Josi, who has finished in the top five in Norris Trophy voting five times, winning once. Alexandre Carrier, Jeremy Lauzon, Spencer Stastney, Luke Schenn and Dante Fabbro round out the group. 

When the Predators signed goaltender Juuse Saros to a contract extension, despite having top goaltending prospect Yaroslav Askarov in the fold, that should have been a clue that Nashville was aiming to win now. Askarov has since been traded to San Jose and Saros has finished in the top six of Vezina Trophy voting in four consecutive seasons.

Winnipeg Jets (+778*)

The Jets surprised last season, thanks in part to outstanding goaltending and due to improved depth after trading Pierre-Luc Dubois to Los Angeles.

The Jets may need another spectacular season from Connor Hellebuyck to challenge for the division title.

This season, the Jets have a lot of continuity at forward, which is a good thing because they have a lot of talent. Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele, Gabe Vilardi, Nikolaj Ehlers, Cole Perfetti, Vladislav Namestnikov, Adam Lowry, Nino Niederreiter, Mason Appleton and Alex Iafallo give the Jets a sound base of talent. 

On defense, Josh Morrissey has emerged as a top tier blueliner in the past couple of seasons and Dylan DeMelo is a steady top four defender. It gets shakier after that with Neal Pionk, Dylan Samberg and Colin Miller next on the depth chart. Ville Heinola and Logan Stanley are currently injured, so Haydn Fleury appears to have the inside track on a regular spot.

That suspect defense could make life more challenging for standout goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, who won his second Vezina Trophy last season. If the Jets are going to challenge for the division title, they might need another season like that from Hellebuyck.

Bet: Central Division Winner Odds

Minnesota Wild (+1088*)

The Wild missed the playoffs last season and haven’t won a division title since 2007-2008, but among teams that are not considered favorites, they might have a shot.

The Wild could be sleepers if their goaltending bounces back this season.

The Wild attack runs through Kirill Kaprizov, who has scored 133 goals across the past three seasons. Matt Boldy, Joel Eriksson Ek and Mats Zuccarello are the leading members of the supporting cast, with Ryan Hartman, Marcus Johansson, Macus Foligno and Marco Rossi offering additional help.

Calder Trophy runner-up Brock Faber will continue to play a big role on the Minnesota defense and a healthy Jared Spurgeon would go a long way towards the Wild becoming more competitive. Jonas Brodin, Jacob Middleton, Declan Chisholm and Zach Bogosian fill out the rest of the defense corps. It should be a solid group.

Goaltender Filip Gustavsson was outstanding in 2022-2023, but his play dropped off significantly last season. If Gustavsson can bounce back, the Wild could be a surprise team. If he doesn’t, Marc-Andre Fleury is likely not at the stage of his career where he can put the team on his back. 

Utah Hockey Club (+1729*)

The franchise has moved from Arizona to Utah, bringing an intriguing young core with it.

The Utah Hockey Club has a lot of young talent and could surprise. 

The Utah Hockey Club boasts an exciting group of forwards including Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, Barrett Hayton, Lawson Crouse, Alex Kerfoot, Michael Carcone and Jack McBain, with emerging young talent that could lift this group to another level. Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley are the headliners of the young scorers, but Matias Maccelli and Josh Doan could be significant contributors, too.

Utah’s blueline has been remodeled, most notably by their trades to acquire Mikhail Sergachev from Tampa Bay and John Marino from New Jersey. They also signed veteran Ian Cole, and they are joined by returnees Juuso Valimaki, Sean Durzi and Michael Kesselring. It might not be quite at the level of a top contender, but that group could be enough to effectively support Utah’s quality forwards.

In net, the duo of Connor Ingram and Karel Vejmelka has potential. Ingram was strong last season, emerging as the starter, while Vejmelka has struggled at times, but could be a quality No. 2 option with a stronger team in front of him.

The path to the playoffs is not easy for Utah, trying to make its way through the challenging Central Division, and it would seem more likely that they could sneak into the postseason, something that they have only managed once in the past 12 seasons. Going all the way back to its starting in the NHL as the Winnipeg Jets, the franchise has won one divisional title, in 2011-2012.

Bet: Central Division Winner Odds

St. Louis Blues (+2372*)

After missing the playoffs in back-to-back seasons, the Blues are looking to climb back into contention this year.

The Blues have solid players, but maybe not enough difference makers to be contenders.

They do have some pieces with which to work at forward. Playmaker Robert Thomas and sniper Jordan Kyrou are at the top of the list, with Pavel Buchnevich, Brayden Schenn and Jake Neighbours among the more valuable supporting cast. Brandon Saad, Mathieu Joseph and offer sheet recipient Dylan Holloway add further value. It’s a solid enough group, though maybe lacking enough dynamic scoring options to be a true contender.

On the St. Louis blueline, Justin Faulk, Colton Parayko and Nick Leddy are the returning mainstays with Torey Krug likely to miss the season due to ongoing ankle issues. Philip Broberg, another offer sheet procurement from Edmonton, veteran Ryan Suter and Scott Perunovich should round out the top six. Much like the forward group, the Blues appear to have a competent defensive lineup, but maybe not enough impact players.  

Goaltending made a major difference for the Blues last season, and they still finished six points out of a playoff spot. Jordan Binnington followed up what may have been his worst season in 2022-2023 with his best season in 2023-2024. It might be asking a lot for him to duplicate that season, but Joel Hofer also delivered a strong rookie season, so he could potentially step into a bigger role if Binnington falters.

Nevertheless, the Blues don’t look like a team that is ready to win the division, in part because the Central is going to require more than mere competence to finish in first place.

Chicago Blackhawks (+8009*)

After finishing with the second worst record in the league last season, the Chicago Blackhawks are making an effort to be more competitive in 2024-2025, but being more competitive is a very low bar to clear.

Chicago has a long way to go to be a contender, but they will be better in 2024-2025.

Naturally, Calder Trophy winner Connor Bedard is the focal point, and veterans Nick Foligno and Jason Dickinson can contribute, but the Blackhawks also added veterans Teuvo Teravainen, Tyler Bertuzzi, Ilya Mikheyev and Craig Smith. 

They will also hope for a healthy Taylor Hall and continued development from Philipp Kurashev and Lukas Reichel. There is a path to this being a capable group. Not division-winning but capable.

On the blueline, Chicago added veterans Alec Martinez and T.J. Brodie, joining Seth Jones, Alex Vlasic, Connor Murphy and Kevin Korchinski. It will likely take significant growth from Vlasic and Korchinski to make a real difference on D.

A goaltending tandem of Petr Mrazek and Laurent Brossoit is hardly going to make a big splash. It’s possible that the duo could be decent, at the high end, and that is a reasonable hope, but they aren’t going to be enough to lift this team to the 60-point improvement they will likely need to win the division in 2024-2025. 

Best Bet: Nashville Predators (+378*)

*Subject to change.

Bet: Latest Central Division odds

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