Hello and welcome, everyone, to the Stanley Cup Final on this Friday, June 6th, 2025, betting edition! Wagering on the Cup games is always bittersweet as it’s the pinnacle of the sport, but it means the season is coming to an end, and what a great year it was for me betting on hockey. 

The Oilers took the Game 1 victory in dramatic fashion with Leon Draisaitl scoring the winner in overtime, but will the Panthers bounce back or finally crumble under the fatigue of playing in 3 straight Stanley Cup finals? Check out my best bet for tonight to find out where I am putting my money and enjoy the game!

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NHL Stanley Cup Final Picks, Predictions & Best Bets Today, 6/6

Panthers vs. Oilers Predictions, Game 2

This series, through 1 game, has the look and feel of an instant classic as both teams battled into the late night in overtime that resulted in the Oilers drawing first blood on a perfect pass from Connor McDavid to Leon Draisaitl that we’ve seen so many times before. 

Here are my thoughts on Game 1 and how they will affect this game here tonight, and how I will wager on it. As good as the defenses have been, offense took center stage as I had predicted it would, as the over on 6 goals hit a winning bet for all of us. The game totaled 78 shots over nearly 4 periods of hockey, and I thought both goaltenders played well despite the high scoring result. Bobrovsky was the busiest, having to turn away 42 shots in the losing effort, but he was still very good. At even strength, the Oilers carried play just slightly in the analytics department and cashed in a power-play goal as well. All in all, Edmonton finished the game with an expected goals mark of 4.504, and the Panthers fell short at 3.705.  

With all of that being learned, let’s dive into Game 2 and what I am wagering on. Most of the games in this series are going to be a coin flip, as many have it going to 7 games, and each team has perfected its style of play. If it's close to a true 50/50 split, then I wonder why I don’t wager on the underdogs on the Money Line? That would be the Panthers tonight, who you can get from +105 to +115 on different sportsbooks today. They still have the more complete team and better goaltender, and if they can stay out of the penalty box, they are slightly the better 5-on-5 team, generally speaking. I expect Paul Maurice to make some adjustments tonight as well because giving up 46 shots is not normal for the Panthers, and I believe they come back swinging tonight and knot the series at a game apiece. 

Pick: Panthers Money Line (+115 on Caesars)
 

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