The NHL season is 50 games old, with the All-Star break less than 48 hours away. With the best record in the league, the Washington Capitals (33-11-5) are co-favorites to win the 2020 Stanley Cup at 8/1 odds. The defending champion St. Louis Blues (30-11-8) are also 8/1 odds to win the Stanley Cup in back-to-back years.
While everyone is chasing the Capitals, the Tampa Bay Lightning (29-15-4) and Boston Bruins (28-10-12) are popular picks to win the Stanley Cup this season with 9/1 odds for both teams. The Bruins lead the Atlantic Conference with 68 points. The Lightning are in second with 62 points.
The young, exciting, and high-scoring Colorado Avalanche (28-15-6) are the second-best team in the Western Conference. The Avs are a great value pick at 12/1 odds to win the Cup.
2020 Stanley Cup Odds
Washington Capitals 8/1
St. Louis Blues 8/1
Tampa Bay Lightning 9/1
Boston Bruins 9/1
Colorado Avalanche 12/1
Vegas Golden Knights 14/1
New York Islanders 15/1
Toronto Maple Leafs 15/1
Dallas Stars 16/1
Pittsburgh Penguins 16/1
Only three teams in the NHL passed 30 wins so far: Washington (33), Pittsburgh (31), and St. Louis (30). Despite one of the best records in the league, and missing Sidney Crosby for a significant amount of time with a groin injury, the Penguins offer up some value at 16/1 odds.
The slumping New York Islanders (28-15-1) dropped three straight games. Barry Trott’s team upset the Tampa Lightning in the first round last year. Even with a streaky squad this season, the Islanders are 15/1 odds to win the Cup.
Canada Cold Streak
Only seven teams from Canada are in the NHL. After two decades of dominance, a Canadian team hasn’t won the Stanley Cup since the Montreal Canadiens accomplished the feat in 1993. The 1990s ended with seven straight champions from Canada. Since then, a Canadian team won the Cup once. It’s now 27 years and counting since a Canadian team hoisted the Cup.
In the late 1970s, the Canadiens dominated the NHL with four straight titles between 1976 and 1979. In the 1980s, Wayne Gretzky and the Edmonton Oilers won four Stanley Cups in five seasons. The Canadiens prevented the Oilers from a three-peat in 1986, while the Calgary Flames thwarted a three-peat in 1989.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have the highest odds out of any Canadian team, but they’re on the verge of missing the playoffs.
Oh Canada in 2020
The Toronto Maple Leafs (25-17-7) are Canada’s great hope this season, so long as they make the playoffs. At present, the Leafs would bubble the playoffs and miss by two points. The Leafs have a fairly strong home record in Toronto with a 12-6-7 record. Their young center, Auston Matthews leads the team with 34 goals and 57 points. The Leafs also have the fifth-best power-play unit in the NHL.
The Vancouver Canucks (27-18-4) lead the Pacific, and are 10th in the NHL in scoring. They have both the Edmonton Oilers (26-18-5) and Calgary Flames (26-19-5) fighting for the division crown.
Stanley Cup Odds – Canadian Teams
Toronto Maple Leafs 15/1
Calgary Flames 25/1
Edmonton Oilers 25/1
Vancouver Canucks 25/1
Winnipeg Jets 28/1
Montreal Canadiens 40/1
Ottawa Senators 250/1
The Oilers are the second-best team in the Pacific Division. The Oilers boast the top power play stats in the league with a 29.7 percentage. Ranked #10 at 82.1 percent, they have a solid penalty-killing unit as well.
The Flames (26-19-5) allow only 2.90 goals per game, which is ranked #12 overall. The pesky Flames also have the seventh-best penalty-killing unit in the league at 82.5 percent.
The Winnipeg Jets (25-20-4) are on the Western playoff bubble and trail both the Vegas Golden Knights and Arizona Coyotes by three points.