NHL Playoff & Stanley Cup Predictions

In hockey, we often imagine chaos and anarchy to lord over the fates of the skates and ice but in recent years, oddsmakers have ruled the roost. The Tampa Bay Lightning, winners of the last two Stanley Cups have reigned supreme on and off the ice, having topped Championship odds boards for the past half-decade, and testify to the evolution of the game and how value can be measured and projected with startling efficiency. True to form, the Lightning is among a handful of favorites to end their 2021-22 season as champions of the National Hockey League. Only the Colorado Avalanche has better odds in pregame betting than Tampa Bay to be crowned champions. If you're not a pre-game bettor, check out our live betting tips to see how some sharps pay the bills in the heat of match.

Nonetheless, no matter how daunting or affirming the odds may be for any team, the game is still decided inside the rink. It was only three years ago that the St. Louis Blues overcame the worst record in the National Hockey League at Christmas to triumph over the Boston Bruins in seven games and lift the Stanley Cup.

Therefore, regardless of their odds at online sports betting sites, every team will enter the 2021-22 season feeling that this year is their year, which is not at all surprising. In order to win at any level in hockey, you must be blessed with ability. Winning in the National Hockey League requires a limitless will to win. 

For the best betting odds on the 2021-22 Stanley Cup winner, visit FanDuel Sportsbook. 

Second-round exits in back-to-back seasons have overshadowed a monstrous two-year run for the Colorado Avalanche in the National Hockey League. Over the past pair of seasons, they've won at an astonishing rate, posting a collective record of 81-33-12 in that span. Doubtless, the Colorado Avalanche will be chomping at the bit to exorcise their playoff demons, and embark on the deep playoff run that has eluded them for so long. 

To that end, the Avalanche has all the makings of a championship roster. As their 81-33-12 record reflects, the Colorado Avalanche is flush with elite talent at every position. A combination of veteran savvy and youthful exuberance has produced a menacing outfit on the ice, and has oddsmakers listing the Colorado Avalanche as the runaway favorites to lift the Stanley Cup this season. 

Not so long ago, the Tampa Bay Lightning were haunted by playoff demons not disimilar to those that plague the minds of Avalanche players and fans alike. Until one day, they weren't. All it takes is one playoff run to shatter the illusion of impossibility in the postseason. And for a team as talented as the Avs competing in a watered down Western Conference, expect them to overcome more than their playoff jitters and do what they have done without pause for the last two years: dominate. The Colorado Avalanche are your odds-on favorites to be crowned 2021-22 Stanley Cup champions. 

Hot on the heels of the Colorado Avalanche, is the defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning who've stormed through the league for the past two seasons and left nothing but horror in their wake. And, rightfully so. The National Hockey League's Stanley Cup has not changed residence since arriving in Tampa Bay two seasons ago. The Lightning enters the 2021-22 season with ghosts, more than goals in their sights. No team in the National Hockey League has won three consecutive championships since the New York Islanders reeled off four straight between 1980-83. With history well within their reach, Tampa Bay will be hoping that what they've lost in the offseason does not forebode a more heartbreaking loss in the postseason. After all, the best goalie in the world still suits up for Tampa Bay. Added to that, the Lightning also counts an exceptional top line, and equally world class defensive pairs among their riches. 

There is no replacing Tyler Johnson, Yanni Gourde, Barclay Goodrow or Blake Coleman; and the value they've brought to this golden age of hockey in Tampa Bay. However, the Lightning will be banking on the glut of championship experience they've accumulated over these past two years to carry them over the line and do what the great teams in Chicago and Pittsburgh failed to do in the last decade.  

Everybody and their grandmother will be celebrating in Las Vegas, and for good reason. The Vegas Golden Knights no longer share a division with the Colorado Avalanche, and without the Avs to terrorize them at every turn, Vegas finally looks set to make a deep playoff run. Similarly to the Avalanche, the Golden Knights boast a bevy of talent up and down the roster. For fans of the Vegas Golden Knights, the race to be crowned 2021-22 Stanley Cup champions is only the beginning of what projects to be a half decade of dominance in the National Hockey League. 

Fortunately for the Golden Knights, their astute contract management has not cost them a whisker in the talent department, with a roster that's among the best in the league. 

Nobody will be more embarrassed by Toronto than Toronto itself. For what seems like forever, to anyone born in this millennium, the Toronto Maple Leafs have failed to progress past the first round of the National Hockey League playoffs since 2004. 

It's been seventeen years since the city of Toronto has been able to celebrate an extended stretch of summertime hockey. Truthfully, no matter how promising they've looked in the regular season over the years it seems they've found a way to outperform their own failures, year after year. 

There is no doubt Toronto will be eager to rid themselves of the "choker" label so often thrown around in sports to describe competitors who strike one as having developed a flair for failure in the tensest moments of competition. 

After fluffing a comparably easier all-Canadian division last year, they're unlikely to see much improvement in their fortunes this season. Toronto's back in the Atlantic Division which means they'll have their hands full dealing with division rivals in the Boston Bruins and the Tampa Bay Lightning. 

In the event that they are able to triumph over their division rivals, the city of Toronto may be abuzz with ring talk come the Summer. At least that's what oddsmakers think, at +1100 they have the fourth best championship odds league wide.

Boston's been busy, and they want you to know it. After a frenzied, yet calculated, summer of spending, the Boston Bruins are flush with talent at every end of their roster. In all that spending they've been able to resign core members of their team, and in doing so protected their quest for their seventh Stanley Cup triumph in franchise history.  

There's no question Boston will be a tough out for any team that crosses their path. The Bruins will be itching to summit the NHL mountain once more, and are a favorable risk for those looking to bet on history to prove triumphant. 

From fad to fashionable, the Carolina Hurricanes are the National Hockey League's team on everybody's lips this season, as they seek to best the division-clinching 36-12-8 record they put up last season. 

Although they put forth a valiant effort, the Canes were unable to overcome an ageless Tampa Bay who were able to repeat as Stanley Cup champions. 

There's reason to be optimistic about Carolina, and at +2300 could net a small fortune for anyone who loves an underdog story.  

In only a season the Florida Panthers came to the fore and established themselves as a force to be reckoned with in the National Hockey League. Unfortunately for the Panthers, they collided with a ruthless Lightning team who've slain every enemy in their wake. 

Just how much the Panthers can grow and ascend to the very peaks of the NHL remains to be seen. They'll certainly lean heavily on the leadership of Alex Barkov at center as well as the defensive prowess of MacKenzie Weegar who was a contender for the Norris Trophy in the previous season. 

For every Batman, there's a joker. And apparently in the National Hockey League, for every Toronto Maple Leaf playoff loss that confounds, there is a New York Islander playoff triumph that astounds. 

Year after year, the Islanders defy the odds, and this year it's likely we're in for much of the same. With a thirteen-game road stretch to begin their 2021-22 NHL season, bettors will be eager to buy low on New York's championship hopes. In the last two seasons alone, they've lost to the eventual champion Tampa Bay Lightning on back-to-back occasions in the Eastern Conference Finals. 

If by some stroke of fortune for New York, or by some other tragedy for Tampa Bay, the Islanders just may be able to resurrect their past glory after all and compete for their fifth Stanley Cup triumph in franchise history.

"Father Time is undefeated" so say those cultured in the history of sports and the inevitabilities of mortality on the human body. It's unlikely the Pittsburgh Penguins are the exception to the rule, for the second year in a row. Last year they got lucky. It's unlikely they will be as fortunate this time around. But if you were to bet anyone to do it, you'd bet on Sidney Crosby. 

The Penguins are a great pick for anyone who loves to champion the greats. 

 

If you're as willing to abandon your sanity as the New York Rangers are in their commitment to a rebuild, then this may just be the pick for you. 

You should be advised, however, that it's unlikely you'll be celebrating a parade in July. 

Rookie sensation Kirill Kaprizov, signed a hefty five-year $45 million contract with the Wild this offseason, and Minnesota will be holding their breath that he's worth every last penny. 

If they are to have any hope of being crowned Stanley Cup champions, Kaprizov will have no choice but to do a flawless Alex Ovechkin rendition and hope for the best. 

Once again, Connor McDavid proved that he is far and away the best player in the National Hockey League. Unfortunately for the Edmonton Oilers, they're also a world away from being the best team in the NHL. 

It's unlikely McDavid is able to overcome the Oilers' limitations on his own.

How do I place a bet on the Stanley Cup?

To place a wager on the team you believe will lift the NHL's Stanley Cup for the 2021-22 season, get our Caesars Sportsbook Risk-Free Bet Here.  

What types of bets can I place on the NHL?

With sports betting apps, it's never been easier to bet on the NHL. You can place bets on playoff matchups, individual games, conference and division winners, award winners, as well as who you think will end the season as Stanley Cup champions.