NHL Futures Best Bets 2024 – Central Division

We are now one week away from the first NHL game of the season! Preseason is in full swing and that means it’s time to place some season long bets to help pad your bankroll for the NHL playoffs. Last week we broke down three player prop futures in the Metro Division. Today let’s look at three futures best bets from the Central!  This is a multi-part series that will run until the first puck drop in early October. So time to lace them up and get ready to ride with Betzky on my favorite future player props and team point totals of the 2024-2025 NHL season!

1. Roman Josi for the Norris Trophy +1,200 on BetOnline:

The Nashville Predators loaded up this offseason. They signed 25+ goal scorer Johnathan Marchessault and future Hall of Famer Steven Stamkos to bolster their offense. They weren’t done adding superstars as they also signed Brady Skeji to make their blueline even tougher to play against. This means last season’s 10th best team for goals for per game should get a major boost, and that means top defenseman Roman Josi should rack up even more points. This all leads to him being a best bet for the Norris trophy and a tasty NHL futures best bet.

Josi has won the Norris Trophy before (2020) and is known for his offensive prowess and leadership qualities. He remained a top defenseman while Nashville’s re-tooled and should be leading an even stronger offense this season. Josi consistently puts up points (85 points last season) and logs significant ice time. The Predators should be even better this season, so his Norris chances will increase as Josie has a better chance to repeat his 96 point Norris winning season.

At 33 years old, Josi might not be the favorite, but it feels like the sportsbooks are emphasizing this too much. At +1,200 this is absolutely worth a sprinkle, especially with the upgrades the team made. You can even hedge this bet by placing a second bet on another defenseman in the Central, Cale Makar. Makar is the front runner to win the award. But the Colorado Avalance don’t feel nearly as dangerous as years before with significant depth issues.

Josi has a great shot at being the top scoring defenseman this season on a rejuvenated Predators team. Having a strong two-way defensman like Skeji should also allow him to roam the ice more and be more of an offensive threat. This is one of my favorite long shot NHL futures bet.

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2. Casey Mittdelstadt o50.5 Points for -115 on BetOnline:

The Colorado Avalanche desperately needed an upgrade at the center position. To remedy this they traded young defenseman Byram for a young center Casey Mittdelstadt during the last trade deadline. While he only had limited time on the Avalanche, Mittdelstadt played his best games for the team during the playoffs. In those 11 playoff games he put up 3 goals and 9 points.

Noe Mittdelstadt will play the second line center role for the entire season for the Avalanche. And while their depth at wing looks shaky right now, the Avalanche are expected to get power forward Val Nichushkin and skilled winger Lehkonen back in the line up by this winter. That means Mittdelstadt could be playing with some top end wingers, or maybe the Avalance spread their skilled players throught the lineup and top winger Rantanen plays with Mittdelstadt.

Then of course there’s the power play. The Avalanche had the 5th best power play last season and Mittdelstadt is expected to be the center on the top unit with MacKinnon, Makar and Rantanen. He had 57 points last season, while playing the majority of the year on Buffalo. And two seasons ago Mittdelstadt had a career best 59 points. With the upgrade on team offense his 50.5 points feels like a solid NHL futures best bet.

Get 50% up to $750 Deposit on BetOnline for this pick

3. Andre Tourigny for the Jack Adams Trophy +1,200 on BetOnline:

Another NHL futures best bet that is an award, but one of my favorites that I dug up this offseason. The Arizona Coyotes have relocated to Utah and are now the Utah Hockey Club. This was a team battling for a playoff spot up until February and March were they went on a 14 game losing streak after relocation rumors broke. As much as head coach Andre Tourigny tried to right the ship, he was unable to keep the team focused with these distractions.

Now with a new home, a new fan base and some major additions the Utah Hockey Club could make a big splash. They added top defenseman and Stanley Cup winner Mikahil Sergachev. They bolstered their defense further adding Stanley Cup winners Ian Cole and John Marino. And their forward group looks deadly with young studs like Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley ready to turn heads along with staples like Clayton Keller and Lawson Crouse.

All of this being said, Andre Tourigny has already proven to get the best out of his players. He will now coach not only the best roster he has been in front of, but the team will be motivated to impress their new home crowd. If this team makes the playoff Tourigny will be a shoe-in for the award. Even if they are flirting with the playoff until the end of the season it would be logical for the NHL to give the team a trophy in their inaugural season. Tourigny has a chance to lead the team who makes the largest improvement this season making him a great NHL futures bet for coach of the year.

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Interested in More Content?

More NHL Content on Betting News:

• NHL Betting Guide
• NHL Futures Best Bets – Atlantic Division
• NHL Futures Best Bets – Metro Division
• NHL Awards – Hart Trophy
• NHL Awards – Norris Trophy
• NHL Awards – Vezina Trophy