Steve Starr
- The Colorado Avalanche (+180) are heavy Cup favorites following their first-round sweep of Nashville
- Tampa Bay (+525) and Florida (+550) are facing off in the Sunshine State while Calgary (+475) and Edmonton (+2200) battle for Alberta in Round 2
- The Stanley Cup Final is schedule to begin in late June
The Stanley Cup Playoffs is down to the final eight teams after a hard-fought first round brought less upsets than usual. With the second round already underway, let’s look at the updated odds to hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup this summer.
Here’s also where you can find the top betting sites for NHL hockey in 2022 and smart wagering tips in our 2022 Stanley Cup betting guide.
Stanley Cup – Odds To Win
 |
|
| Colorado Avalanche | +180 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | +450 |
| Calgary Flames | +475 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | +525 |
| Florida Panthers | +550 |
| New York Rangers | +1800 |
| Edmonton Oilers | +2200 |
| St. Louis Blues | +2800 |
Avalanche on top of the mountain
The Avalanche (+180) is favored to win their first championship since 2001 despite failing to advance to the NHL Conference Finals in the past two decades. Nathan MacKinnon and company have been eliminated in the second round in three-consecutive years, but they’re off to a strong enough start against St. Louis (+2800).
If they can get past the same Blues team they swept in the first round last season, Colorado will likely face Calgary (+475) in a Rocky Mountain matchup to determine who represents the West in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Blues vs Avalanche Game 1 score: Josh Manson nets overtime winner for Coloradohttps://t.co/qKlB5vXhKI
— Fox News (@FoxNews) May 18, 2022
The Flames have to vanquish the Oilers (+2200) in the Battle of Alberta before getting a shot at an Avs squad that defeated them in two of three games this season. Two-time Cup-winning coach Darryl Sutter knows what it takes this time of year. And his talented club could be poised to bring Lord Stanley north of the border for the first time in almost three decades.
At almost five-to-one odds, we like Calgary to upset Colorado in the Western Conference Final and earn a chance at Canada’s first Cup since the Montreal Canadiens won it in 1993.
Hurricane warning out East
Carolina (+450) is favored to win the Eastern Conference following their 2-1 overtime victory over the Rangers on Wednesday. However, don’t expect that to be the case when the puck drops on the third round. The victor of the Lightning (+525) and Panthers (+550) series will likely emerge as the favorite to make the Cup Final.
We expect that to be Tampa Bay after the two-time defending champions claimed Game 1 in Miami on Tuesday night. It’s difficult to imagine Florida stringing wins together given that the Bolts have won 17-consecutive games following a loss over the past three postseasons.
Nikita Kucherov decided to snatch a man’s soul tonight pic.twitter.com/QwgcH3zMcZ
— Andrew Weiss (@WeissHockeyTalk) May 18, 2022
New York (+1800) came back from a 3-1 series deficit versus the Penguins so Gerard Gallant’s club shouldn’t be dismissed despite blowing game 1 in Raleigh. That said, the Rangers will need Vezina-lock Igor Shesterkin to regain the form he showed throughout the first three quarters of the NHL season.
The East feels like a toss up between the Canes and the Lightning. And it’s hard to pick against a team boasting the league’s best goalie (Andrei Vasilevskiy), top blueliner (Victor Hedman) and a bevy of seasoned playoff goal scorers in Nikita Kucherov, Steven Stamkos and Brayden Point (currently out with a lower-body injury).
We’ll take the Lightning and Flames in a rematch of the 2004 Stanley Cup Final.
See below the top sportsbooks where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:
