2026 Stanley Cup Odds: Betting Favorites, Sleepers & Longshots Worth a Look
The NHL season has hardly gone according to plan. The Florida Panthers, the defending champions and preseason favorites to win the Stanley Cup, failed to make the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Buffalo Sabres snapped their lengthy postseason drought in shocking fashion, earning 50 wins and locking up the Atlantic Division.
The Colorado Avalanche have dominated all season long, and they enter the playoffs as the team to beat. The field is wide open behind them, though, and they aren’t immune to an early upset, either. Winning the Presidents’ Trophy does not always equate to postseason success.
There’s value out there, and we’ve set out to find it. Here’s how we’re betting on the 2026 Stanley Cup winner as the first round gets underway. Tag along with our picks by betting at BMR’s top-rated NHL sportsbooks.
Full Stanley Cup Odds Table
The Avalanche are one of three teams with +500 odds or shorter to win the Stanley Cup. The list of contenders doesn’t stop there, though. Full odds via BetOnline:
Team | Stanley Cup Odds | Conference | First-Round Opponent |
Colorado Avalanche | +320 | West | Los Angeles Kings |
Tampa Bay Lightning | +450 | East | Montreal Canadiens |
Carolina Hurricanes | +500 | East | Ottawa Senators |
Dallas Stars | +1100 | West | Minnesota Wild |
Vegas Golden Knights | +1200 | West | Utah Mammoth |
Edmonton Oilers | +1200 | West | Anaheim Ducks |
Buffalo Sabres | +1400 | East | Boston Bruins |
Minnesota Wild | +1600 | West | Dallas Stars |
Ottawa Senators | +1800 | East | Carolina Hurricanes |
Montreal Canadiens | +2500 | East | Tampa Bay Lightning |
Pittsburgh Penguins | +3300 | East | Philadelphia Flyers |
Utah Mammoth | +4000 | West | Vegas Golden Knights |
Los Angeles Kings | +6000 | West | Colorado Avalanche |
Philadelphia Flyers | +6000 | East | Pittsburgh Penguins |
Anaheim Ducks | +6600 | West | Edmonton Oilers |
Boston Bruins | +6600 | East | Buffalo Sabres |
Tier 1: The Favorites
The winner of the Stanley Cup probably lives in this tier. This is the upper echelon of contenders, and their odds are short for good reason.
Colorado Avalanche (+320)
Case For: Sustained success is generally a marker of a true contender, and Colorado is a textbook example. The Avalanche won 31 of their first 40 games, with only two of those losses coming in regulation. They were slightly more sporadic down the stretch, but that feels like nitpicking for a team that ranks No. 1 in goals for and against.
Case Against: Go to Google and start typing in “Presidents’ Trophy.” One of the top three autofill results will almost certainly mention the curse. In short: Only eight out of 37 winners have gone on to claim the Stanley Cup, and we’re currently on a stretch of 12 straight failing to do so.
Betting Verdict: Are you superstitious? If so, it’s probably in your best interest to bet on a different team. The Presidents’ Trophy curse has hit hard lately, and at +320, you can chase a larger return elsewhere. If you don’t believe in the curse, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more complete team in the playoffs for the price.
Tampa Bay Lightning (+450)
Case For: The Lightning aren’t strangers to the postseason. Jon Cooper has led Tampa Bay to the playoffs in all but one year since 2013-14, and this season’s squad is loaded with veterans, including Nikita Kucherov and Andrei Vasilevskiy. The last few months haven’t been as pretty, but the Lightning are prone to hot streaks, which bodes well for postseason success.
Case Against: A first-round matchup with Montreal is potentially dangerous. The Canadiens got hot to end the regular season, and they’ve played Tampa Bay well, going 2-1-1. The Lightning also aren’t especially dominant and have been eliminated in the first round three years in a row.
Betting Verdict: This is a solid value at +450, thanks in part to Vasilevskiy’s stellar work in goal. If you’re a believer in his talents, there’s plenty of reason to make this bet.
Playing it safe? Bet Colorado or Tampa Bay at one of our top-rated sportsbooks before each series begins.
Tier 2: The Sleepers
This is where the real value is found. The sleeper tier houses up-and-coming giants, veteran teams that underperformed in the regular season and everything in between.
Buffalo Sabres (+1400)
Case For: Everyone is happy for the Sabres, but they won’t be when their favorite team matches up with them in the playoffs. After a rocky start, Buffalo proved its legitimacy by going 40-12-5 from December through the end of the regular season. It’s hard to ignore that type of momentum, and winning a first-round series against Boston won’t make their odds any longer.
Case Against: Playoff experience is important, and the Sabres are lacking in that regard. It helps to have Lindy Ruff calling the shots again, but points leaders Tage Thompson and Rasmus Dahlin, among others, are making their postseason debuts. That’s a tough factor to account for.
Betting Verdict: If you think the Sabres will beat the Bruins, now is the time to strike. This +1400 tag isn’t going to last forever.
Montreal Canadiens (+2500)
Case For: The Canadiens are hot when it matters most, entering the postseason as winners in 11 of their last 14. Montreal has given up a fair number of goals, but this offense is strong, buoyed by Cole Caufield’s career-high 51 scores. They’re also playing in a relatively safe region of the bracket.
Case Against: There are giants en route to the Stanley Cup. Assuming Montreal gets by Tampa Bay and Buffalo, this team would likely still need to defeat Carolina just to reach the Final. Would the Canadiens even have the energy to compete by then?
Betting Verdict: This is a fair price for a team that finished just three points shy of clinching the Atlantic. The Canadiens got some playoff experience last season, too. Sometimes, that’s all it takes to spark a deep run the following year.
There’s money to be made on this year’s sleepers. Lock it up before Round 1 begins and the value is gone.
Tier 3: The Longshots
There’s a glimmer of hope with these squads, and we don’t fault you for clinging to it. Stranger things have happened, and perhaps fortune will favor one of these longshots in 2026.
Pittsburgh Penguins (+3300)
Case For: After missing the playoffs three years in a row, it looks like Pittsburgh has at least one more run in it after all. And boy, the Penguins can score. They netted the second most goals in the NHL this season, trailing only Colorado. They also have limitless postseason experience between Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Erik Karlsson.
Case Against: The offense is great, but the defense is a massive liability. The Penguins rank inside the bottom 10 in goals against, and they only got worse following the Olympic break.
Betting Verdict: At 33-1, I’m inclined to believe in Crosby’s ability to lead his team to one more Cup. If the Penguins can stay hot and find a way to shore up the defense, they’ll significantly outplay this price.
Utah Mammoth (+4000)
Case For: The Mammoth are strong defensively and full of optimism. This young franchise improved upon its debut season and ended the year on a high note, and it now takes on a Vegas team that it fared well against throughout the year.
Case Against: Utah is solid, but to say this team is a legitimate contender might be a stretch. Perhaps the Mammoth upset the Golden Knights, but any one of their second-round opponents could take them out with ease, not to mention a likely Western Conference Final against Colorado.
Betting Verdict: This is a lottery ticket, and as we know, the lottery is not worth playing. Utah has something nice to build off of going into 2026-27, but this franchise has to wait a little longer to truly compete for the Cup.
You’re a believer in the underdog. Put some money on your favorite longshots at one of the best NHL sportsbooks and gloat about your team’s victory when they’re hoisting the Stanley Cup.
Key Historical Trends for Futures Bettors
Presidents’ Trophy Curse: The last 12 winners of the Presidents’ Trophy have failed to win the Stanley Cup, and only eight of the 37 winners have achieved the feat. That’s a staggeringly low rate at which the league’s best team goes on to claim the Cup. If you’re superstitious, you should avoid betting the Avalanche.
Lean on the Favorites: Since 2010, only five teams have won the Stanley Cup with +1000 odds or longer. The overall favorite may not always be the winner, but recent history suggests that one of Colorado (+320), Tampa Bay (+450) or Carolina (+500) gets the job done.
Eastern Conference Supremacy: Seven of the last 10 Cup winners have hailed from the East. This season, two of the top three favorites (Lightning and Hurricanes) represent the conference, while the overall favorite (Avalanche) plays out West.
Don’t Count on Repeat Champions: Going back-to-back is especially challenging in the NHL. The Panthers pulled it off last year, but they failed to even qualify for the playoffs this time around. Nothing is a sure thing.
