The Stanley Cup Playoffs are down to the final four, and the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers are the co-favorites to win it all.
The Oilers and Panthers are both +250 on theScore Bet/ESPN Bet, with the Dallas Stars trailing closely at +275. The Carolina Hurricanes round out the group at +325, meaning no team has an implied probability worse than 23.5%.
Florida entered the postseason as the +700 favorites, while Edmonton had the longest odds at +900 of the four remaining teams before the playoffs started.
Very little separates the final four, and the series odds reflect that. The Oilers and Panthers are both -120 favorites in their respective matchups, which implies a probability of 54.5%. Each conference final is essentially a coin flip.
Despite odds suggesting each of the final four teams has a near-equal chance, bettors are banking on Edmonton to win it all more than the rest.
Connor McDavid and Co. have amassed 33.5% of the bets and 32.6% of the handle (money wagered) on the Stanley Cup winner market. The Stars have received the second-most bets (22.5%) and handle (24.9%), the Panthers the third most (21.1% of bets, 21.3% of the handle), and the Hurricanes the fourth most (17.4% of bets, 17.8% of the handle).
As for the playoff MVP, McDavid is the favorite to win the Conn Smythe award. Mikko Rantanen, who's been carrying the Stars, is a close second.
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Connor McDavid | +325 |
| Mikko Rantanen | +350 |
| Frederik Andersen | +500 |
| Sergei Bobrovsky | +800 |
| Leon Draisaitl | +1000 |
| Jake Oettinger | +1200 |
| Aleksander Barkov | +1500 |
| Sam Reinhart | +1600 |
| Andrei Svechnikov | +2500 |
| Matthew Tkachuk | +2500 |
| Sebastian Aho | +2500 |
| Brad Marchand | +3000 |
| Seth Jarvis | +3000 |
What stands out here is that the Panthers have no players shorter than Sergei Bobrovsky at +800. Florida is a well-balanced team with a good shot at winning back-to-back Stanley Cups. McDavid isn't having as dominant a playoff run as last year when he won the Conn Smythe on a losing team, so if Florida hoists the Cup again, a Panther will likely win the MVP.
Taking a stab at a long shot on the Panthers isn't a bad idea. Brad Marchand leads them in playoff points. Betting on him at +3000 seems like a worthwhile wager. Sam Bennett (+6000), who leads Florida in playoff goals, and Carter Verhaeghe (+7500) are also value options.
