Avalanche, Lightning and Golden Knights Lead 2022 Stanley Cup Odds

Nikki Adams
August 3, 2021

After the Tampa Bay Lightning won their second straight Stanley Cup at the expense of the Montreal Canadiens, sportsbooks went to press immediately with a fresh set of NHL futures for the 2022 Stanley Cup and for some reason the champs were snubbed for the three-peat. Instead, the Colorado Avalanche and the Vegas Golden Knights opened as the top two faves while the Lightning were dubbed as the third best bet.

The Lightning have since seen their NHL odds improve to second in the markets, overtaking the Golden Knights ever so slightly, but their lack of absolute favor must still sting considering they’ve established themselves as the team to beat these past two seasons. Put another way, they should be Stanley Cup faves until proven otherwise.

One of the main reasons why the Lightning did leapfrog in the betting recently is their savvy moves in the offseason. Although the team has had to bid adieu to its third line as well as Tyler Johnson due to the cap situation, general manager Julien BriseBoi is set to counter those losses. Mathieu Joseph and Ross Colton should fill the void while there’s potential for improvement from Anthony Cirelli and Alex Barre-Boulet with more integral roles. Elsewhere, signings such as Corey Perry, Zach Bogosian and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare are positive bargain moves.

The Avs (39-13-4 and 82 points) enjoyed a standout regular season campaign and clinched the President’s trophy when all was said and done, but they failed to live up to expectations when it mattered the most. Colorado fizzled out in the playoffs. losing to the Golden Knights 4-2 in the second round.

After the Golden Knights beat the Avs in the second round of the playoffs, coming back from an 0-2 deficit to dismiss Colorado in six games, most hockey betting fans fancied their chances to reach the Stanley Cup finals. Alas, things didn’t go to plan. The Golden Knights were stunned by the plucky underdogs Montreal Canadiens.

Few had the Canadiens on their radar when the playoffs kicked off, never mind predicting they’d upset the Golden Knights. Vegas entered the penultimate round of the playoffs as the faves to emerge from their section of the draw. They were also the winningest team in the league with a 40-14-2 mark and 82 points. Tale told, the Canadiens got the job done with a 4-2 series lead and the Golden Knights were left ruing a missed opportunity.

The Lightning went 36-17-3 for 75 points in the 2021 regular season and finished third in the Central Division behind the Carolina Hurricanes and the Florida Panthers. The Lightning steamrolled through the playoffs to beat the Panthers, Hurricanes, Islanders and Canadiens.

The 2020-21 NHL season was adapted due to the coronavirus pandemic with a shortened schedule and divisions that were redressed to accommodate regional restrictions. Thus, the Montreal Canadiens played exclusively against teams in Canada, the Colorado Avalanche and Vegas Golden Knights were lumped into a West Division that included the Minnesota Wild, St. Louis Blues, Arizona Coyotes, Los Angeles Kings San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks. The Tampa Bay Lightning, in the meanwhile, fell into the Central Division which include the Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, Dallas Stars, Chicago Blackhawks. Detroit Red Wings and Columbus Blue Jackets.

The 2021-22 NHL season should see the league return to normal with the Lightning playing in the Atlantic Division, the Colorado Avalanche in the Central Division and the Vegas Golden Knights in the Pacific Division.

After the top triplet of Avs, Bolts and Knights, the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins and Minnesota Wild round out the top 10 teams to spot in NHL betting markets.

The Washington Capitals, by contrast, are surprisingly middling, alongside the NY Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, Edmonton Oilers and Philadelphia Flyers.

The NHL season is a few months away with the league looking to resume normal proceedings after the end of the 2019-20 season and the start of the 2020-21 season were disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.