Underdog Fantasy Stanley Cup Prop Predictions (Game 1): Trusting Connor McDavid, Sergei Bobrovsky

Arguably the most highly anticipated Stanley Cup Finals in years is set to begin Wednesday night between the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers.

Last season, the two franchises met in an historic seven-game series, where the Panthers edged the Oilers to raise the cup for the first time in their history. Edmonton erased a 3-0 series deficit, but Florida won Game 7 with a 2-1 score.

Despite the victory, though, Connor McDavid won the Conn Smythe Trophy. McDavid was the first player on a team that didn't win the Stanley Cup to capture the award since Mighty Ducks of Anaheim goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere accomplished that feat in 2003.

This June, McDavid is chasing his first Stanley Cup championship and is trying to win Canada's first NHL title since 1993. Edmonton last won the Stanley Cup in 1990.

The Edmonton-Florida showdown for the second year in a row is the first Stanley Cup rematch since the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins in 2009. The Penguins won the rematch after the Red Wings defeated the Penguins in the 2008 finals.

There are so many juicy storylines and prop picks to consider. Here are our three recommendations for Game 1:

Connor McDavid Over 10.05 Fantasy Points

It's difficult not to trust the Oilers captain even with his over/unders set very high.

McDavid isn't scoring at the same pace as last year's postseason, but he tallied three goals and four multi-point performances in the Western Conference Finals against the Dallas Stars. In the series, he averaged 13.1 fantasy points. McDavid was under 10 fantasy points just once in the five-game series.

Therefore, fantasy managers should feel confident about McDavid reaching 10.5 fantasy points in Game 1. Here's how Underdog calculates its fantasy scoring for skaters:

Goal: 6 points
Assist: 4 points
Power-play Point: 0.5 point
Shot: 1 point
Block: 1 point
Hit: 0.5 point

Sergei Bobrovsky Over 8.5 First Period Saves

I'm finding it difficult to get a read on how this entire series will unfold. That makes it challenging choosing either goalie for prop picks.

It's quite possible that the 2025 Stanley Cup will be a roller coaster ride as it was last year.

But at home in Game 1, the Oilers are likely to be humming on all cylinders in the first period. Bobrovsky and the Panthers may have to weather the storm early.

Bobrovsky has obviously been great at that over the past few seasons. He is 8-2 on the road in this year's playoffs.

In their two home games versus the Stars, the Oilers posted 11 and 10 shots on goal. Behind a raucous crowd, 10 or more shots on net seems likely in the first period Wednesday. I'm counting on Bobrovsky stopping almost all of them.

Sam Bennett Over 2.5 Shots on Goal

Fantasy managers, along with the Oilers, will miss winger Zach Hyman in the Stanley Cup Finals. He became a hits machine this postseason, which was an easy prop to choose. But Hyman will sit out the finals because of an injury sustained in Game 4 versus Dallas.

Therefore, I'm going with Bennett's shots on goal for my last Game 1 prop. Bennett leads the Panthers in shots on net during the postseason with three per game.

Bennett had at least three shots on goal in three of the five games during the Eastern Conference Finals.