2025 NHL Draft Betting Odds

Written by: Matthew Eichhorn Fact checked by: Jaclyn Hurst

Last Updated: June 26, 2025

The 2025 NHL Draft is being held on June 27th-28th, in sunny Los Angeles, California and Canadian sportsbooks are at the ready with the sharpest NHL Draft betting odds. With the New York Islanders possessing the first overall pick after shooting up from 10th to the top position in this year’s NHL Draft Lottery, there’s sure to be plenty of drama and intrigue as we welcome in the latest crop of NHL talent at this year’s draft selection show.

2025 NHL Draft Betting Odds

Scroll down for the latest NHL Draft odds, a rundown on how specific NHL Draft betting markets work, what sportsbooks offer decent value for those markets, and pick up some betting strategy along the way!

🏒 NHL Draft Odds – First Overall Pick

Out of all the markets, the “NHL Draft First Overall Pick” is by far the most popular. Essentially, with this particular market, you’re betting on who will be drafted first overall. There’s not much more to it. Most, if not all, the sportsbooks are offering Matthew Schaefer to be selected numero uno, at very steep odds, with some oddsmakers not taking action on the pick altogether. Although the market is popular, there isn’t a lot of value in 2025.

🏒 NHL Draft Odds – First Player Drafted

The easiest way to look at this market is like it’s a moneyline. You’re betting on who gets drafted first out of the two options. Right now, a very popular matchup both the squares and sharps are targeting is:

• Benjamin Kindel (+220) to get drafted before Sascha Boumedienne (-290)

Essentially, if we sided with the sharps and grabbed Kindel, and he gets drafted at any point before Boumedienne, no matter the round he gets drafted in, we’d win our bet. If Boumedienne gets the nod before our boy Kindel, tough stuff, we’re eating an L.

🏒 NHL Draft Odds – Position Betting

When you bet on “NHL Draft Position,” you’re wagering on whether the player will go higher or lower than a particular selection in the draft. For example, let’s say you bet on Caleb Desnoyers to be drafted Under 4.5 at the 2025 NHL Draft. This means:

• Desnoyers has to be drafted 4th overall or earlier for your bet to win.
• If he gets selected at 5th overall or later, you’d lose your bet because the draft position is higher than 4.5.

In terms of value, books like to keep things pretty sharp, so you might not find varying prices with Desnoyers unless a book wants to give out a five-cent discount to outdo a competitor. We usually like to monitor three books for this market: bet365, Sports Interaction, and BET99.

bet365 has a reputation for being a sharper book that changes lines quickly to adjust when profitable gamblers place bets. If bet365 is hanging a chalky number on the Over/Under for a player’s draft position and Sports Interaction offers a more reasonable price, you might want to look deeper into the play. The same can be said for the other markets we’ll discuss.

Matt’s NHL Draft Betting Picks & Predictions

If you’re looking for the top picks & predictions on this upcoming selection special, I’ve got you covered, fam. Check out my expert NHL Draft betting picks below and boost your bankroll with these moneymaking predictions.

Previously published in Sports Betting Dime, The Hockey Writers, Prospects by Sports Illustrated, and FanSided, Matt has expert knowledge of all major North American sports as well as the best ways to bet on them.

Read more from Matt →

NHL Draft Pick 1: James Hagens to be Drafted 3rd Overall (+1600)

While Hagens has dropped on several draft scout boards, don’t completely overlook the Boston College standout. The American forward had a solid season at BC, putting up 37 points in as many games played, finishing with a fantastic +21 +/- on the year.

Additionally, Hagens was superb at the 2025 World Juniors, helping the USA secure back-to-back gold medals, including scoring a goal in the championship match. With his excellent offensive ability, the upside on Hagens is too good to pass up.

With a proven ability to grow into a point-per-game hockey player at the highest level, don’t sleep on Hagens to live up to the hype, going third overall to the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2025 NHL Draft.

James Hagens 3rd Overall

+1600

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NHL Draft Pick 2: Brady Martin to be Drafted Over 6.5 (+120)

Zagging from my first pick above, look for Brady Martin to fall in the upcoming National Hockey League draft as he is selected ninth or later. While oddsmakers are projecting him to be taken well before the ninth pick, he has not shown enough to garner the odds he’s currently listed at.

While the Soo Grey Hounds forward had a solid season, scoring 72 points in 57 games played, the majority of this came in a losing effort. Additionally, Martin failed to shine at the CHL Prospects Challenge when compared to the other top draft-eligible players featured there.

Not to say that Martin isn’t worthy of a first-round pick, or that he can’t carve out a solid NHL career in the future, but I firmly believe the oddsmakers have overestimated his draft stock (I have him projected to go 12th to the New York Rangers). You can capitalize on this by betting the Over on his draft position.

Brady Martin Over 8.5

+120

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NHL Draft Pick 3: Jackson Smith to be a Top 10 Pick (+225)

Lastly, a popular pick among many experts’ mock drafts, Jackson Smith being selected in the Top 10 at plus money is like finding money. A reliable defenceman sporting a great combination of size and skill, there aren’t many more NHL-ready prospects in this year’s draft.

As Smith is able to move the puck down the ice confidently and create offence from the blue line, bettors should be ready to pounce on this line. Having tallied 54 points for the Tri-City Americans in the WHL in the 2024-25 season, Smith has proven himself to be a dynamic offensive talent.

While he is still likely to fall toward the end of this equation, Smith to be a top 10 pick is an awesome bet to make ahead of this year’s latest NHL odds on draft night.

Jackson Smith Top 10 Pick

+225

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Best NHL Draft Betting Sites 2025

Here are a few of the top NHL sportsbooks that we know and trust to give you the best NHL Draft betting experience.

1. bet365

When “market setting” sportsbook bet365 rolls out its lines, other books usually follow suit or try to one-up this operator. Along with offering everything that you’d expect a sportsbook to shill out for the NHL Draft (such as draft position, the first player drafted, and overall pick markets) you can catch some nice numbers in bet365’s specials market. bet365 also offers some of the best odds on the 2025 NHL Draft. See for yourself what makes bet365 stand out from the competition today and take all your NHL draft betting action to this top-notch oddsmaker.

NHL Draft Betting Highlights:

• Top NHL Draft odds
• Fast payouts
• Wide range of draft betting markets

2. Sports Interaction (SIA)

Sports Interaction (SIA) will be more or less offering the same betting selection as the other books on this list for NHL Draft betting odds. They can lay some competitive prices in the draft position markets, but that’ll require you to monitor market changes as we get closer to the draft. In 2025, SIA has some fantastic special markets, including team-specific draft props. As a proud Canadian sportsbook, you won’t find many better places to bet on this year’s draft than at Sports Interaction.

NHL Draft Betting Highlights:

• Competitive NHL Draft odds
• Reliable and quick payouts
• User-friendly interface with diverse betting options

3. BET99

BET99 has a dynamite overall bet selection for this year’s draft. Usually, they’ll be one of the first to have markets out during the start of the NHL Draft Combine. BET99 is one of the best sportsbooks when it comes to the variety of futures props offered to users. With specials including the exact draft order of the top draft selections, you can predict the correct order of who gets picked from the second overall to the fourth overall pick, with some eye-catching odds. BET99 also offers draft position and first player drafted markets. Plus, they’ll boost some special markets that vary from province to province.

NHL Draft Betting Highlights:

• Strong NHL Draft prop and futures selection
• User-friendly site with live betting and streaming
• Competitive odds for major hockey events

2025 NHL Draft Betting Quick Facts

• Players born between January 1, 2005, and September 15, 2007, are eligible for this year’s draft
• Undrafted, non-American players born in 2004 are also eligible
• 2023 draftees who were not sgined ot an NHL team are also eligible to re-enter this year’s draft
• The NHL Draft order is determined by: the draft lottery (weighted towards teams with the worst record), teams’ regular season records, and teams’ playoff results
• There are a total of seven rounds in the draft

Last 10 Number One NHL Draft Picks

NHL Draft Betting Tips

Now that you know where to place your bets and a few of the best wagers to make, let’s take your NHL Draft betting skillset to the next level with our NHL Draft betting tips.

🤓 Do Your Research

An obvious but often overlooked bit of advice is that you’ll need to do your research. When it comes to betting on the 2025 NHL Draft, we’d recommend checking out mock drafts from draft insiders and hockey experts, reviewing team needs from across the league, as well as brushing up on any trends from the past few drafts.

All of this will provide you with a significant boost when crafting your NHL Draft wagers and can be the difference between winning and losing your next bet placed.

🛒 Shop Odds & Lines

Whenever you place a bet on any sport, you need to make sure you’re going to get the best bang for your buck. If you’re willing to put your hard-earned money on the line, you may as well get the best possible return for your wager. Compare the odds & lines offered by each of the top online sportsbooks and see which is offering the best overall value on the market you wish to wager on. Once you’ve found the oddsmaker with the juiciest line, hammer it and sweat out your bet. Pro tip: you can sign up with more than one sportsbook!

✋ Bet Responsibly

Last but not least, if you’re planning on betting on the NHL Draft, make sure that you’re doing so responsibly. Responsible gambling can help bettors keep their habits fun, with a decreased risk of landing in financial trouble or with a gambling problem. The top online sportsbooks provide bettors with several helpful responsible gambling tools so that they can limit their spending and keep sports betting fun.

Replay: 2025 NHL Draft Odds

It’s going to be a long few months before we can wager on any NHL games, so why not score one last big win on the NHL by betting on this year’s NHL draft odds? Be sure to head to any of the top NHL betting sites found within this article, sign up, and place your next winning wager using our expert picks or by formulating your own using our helpful betting tips.

Don’t wait, get some skin in on these NHL odds and see if you can boost your bankroll as teams like the San Jose Sharks and Montreal Canadiens make major moves in this year’s draft.

NHL Draft Odds FAQs