Senators 2024-25 NHL Season Betting Preview: Points Total, Player Futures Odds and Predictions
By Nate Duffett
We are 27 days from the NHL's opening night on Oct. 8. The daily NHL picks will return once the season starts, but leading up to the big day I'll preview some future bets for every team in the league. Check out yesterday's article where we broke down the futures for Logan Cooley and the Utah Hockey Club.
The Ottawa Senators have been one of the most disappointing teams in the league over the past five seasons. If you ask them, they are victims of a difficult Atlantic Division more than they are underperforming.
However, their fans want to finally see some playoff hockey for the first time in seven seasons. The last time there was playoff hockey in Ottawa, the Senators were one goal away from the Stanley Cup Finals but lost in overtime of Game 7 to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Senators cleaned up their biggest issue this past offseason when they acquired Linus Ullmark from the Boston Bruins. They believe he will be the answer this season and the catalyst to them climbing the Atlantic Division standings. Will it be enough to get them a playoff spot?
Let's look at two futures bets for the Senators and their players in 2024-25.
Ottawa Senators Future Bets for 2024-25 Season
Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
- Linus Ullmark OVER 26.5 Wins
- UNDER 90.5 Regular Season Points
Linus Ullmark OVER 26.5 Wins
We all know that Ullmark is an improvement over the Senators' goaltending situation last season. The Senators recorded 78 points with a record of 37-41-4. Joonas Korpisalo was their biggest problem, as he owned a 3.27 goals-against average and a .890 save percentage. Despite the poor numbers, the Senators managed to win 21 out of 49 starts thanks to some good offensive output.
So, let's assume that the Senators' offense performs just as well or even improves from last season. They'll now get a goaltender who had a 2.57 goals-against average and a .915 save percentage last season. If Ullmark starts around the same number of games as Korpisalo at 55, he should be able to eclipse this line.
One glaring issue with this prediction is Ullmark's injury history and his usage over the last few seasons. Ullmark isn't accustomed to playing 55 games after splitting his starts with Jeremy Swayman, so we could be holding our breath that he'll stay healthy toward the season's end.
UNDER 90.5 Regular Season Points
It's a fine line we are trying to walk by betting Ullmark to record over 26.5 wins but the Senators to go under 90 points. While I believe in Ullmark to help improve the Senators, he may only be worth 6-7 extra wins over Korpisalo's output from last season. That would put Ullmark at 28 wins and the Senators at 56 points. They would then need Anton Forsberg and overtime/shootout losses to get them the remaining 35 points.
It would be difficult for Forsberg to maintain his win output from last season if his numbers stay the same. Forsberg had a 3.21 goals-against average and a .890 save percentage but a 15-12 record. He would need to replicate that season and the team would have to add five overtime points to hit the over on this number.
The Senators will contend one day during Ullmark's tenure if he re-signs, but this will be a year where they slowly improve before eventually breaking through in the future.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.