The NHL season has entered its final week of the season. The hockey playoffs start in just a week and NHL bettors have just a few more days to lock their futures betting pick.
Bovada online sportsbook has the Colorado Avalanche as the Stanley Cup odds favorites at +350. The Avalanche have not won the Stanley Cup since 2001. The 2000-01 season was also the last time the Avs made the playoff finals. In recent seasons, Colorado has been one of the consistent favorites to win the Stanley Cup. Can Colorado come good and lift Sir Stanley’s cup?
When do the 2022 NHL playoffs start?
The NHL regular season comes to an end on Friday, April 29. The NHL playoffs will begin three days later on Monday, May 2. The NHL Stanley Cup playoff finals are expected to begin in June.
What is the NHL playoffs format for 2022?
After two seasons of playoffs altered due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NHL goes back to a normal format for the postseason.
This season’s playoffs will once again feature eight teams from the Eastern Conference and Western Conference, respectively. The top three teams in each division qualify for the postseason. Two Wild Card teams will make up the final two playoff places in each conference.
The divisional winners will square off against the Wild Card teams. The No. 2 seed team and No. 3 seed team from each division will play head-to-head in the first round.
Each NHL playoff round features a best-of-seven series. There are four rounds in the NHL playoffs as teams must navigate the first round, second round, conference finals and Stanley Cup finals. This means that there is a lot of NHL hockey to wager on this spring and summer.
Which teams have qualified for the 2022 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs?
Several teams have secured their places in the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs. In the Western Conference, qualification could go down to the final day of the season. Here are the teams to qualify thus far:
- Florida Panthers
- Colorado Avalanche
- Carolina Hurricanes
- New York Rangers
- Tampa Bay Lightning
- Calgary Flames
- Boston Bruins
- Toronto Maple Leafs
- St. Louis Blues
- Minnesota Wild
- Washington Capitals
- Pittsburgh Penguins
- Edmonton Oilers
The Western Conference will likely also see the LA Kings, Nashville Predators, and Dallas Stars make the postseason as it stands.
NHL Stanley Cup future betting odds
Here’s a look at the Stanley Cup future betting odds for all of the teams still in contention for a playoff spot and battling for the biggest prize in ice hockey.
(Odds courtesy of Bovada on April 25)
Which team to bet on to win the Stanley Cup?
The Presidents’ Trophy is given out to the NHL’s best regular-season team. At one time, the Presidents’ Trophy winners were regularly winning the Stanley Cup as well. Those times are long gone.
The last eight Presidents’ Trophy winners lost in the playoffs. Last season, the Avalanche won the Presidents’ Trophy but lost in the second round to the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Florida Panthers are likely to wrap up the Presidents’ Trophy this week. The Panthers have 120 points at the time of this writing. Colorado is on 116 points, although many pundits believe the Avs are the best team in the NHL this season.
Winning the Stanley Cup is difficult. After a long, difficult regular season of 82 games, teams must go through four seven-game series to win the Stanley Cup.
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