An entire NHL season has come down to this — a seven-game series to determine the league’s best. We have a complete look at the upcoming tilt between Tampa and Colorado, including our own predictions on who wins the 2022 Stanley Cup. You’ll want to read this before betting on it!
2022 Stanley Cup Finals: Series Winner Pick
We’ll share our Stanley Cup pick to win momentarily, but it would behoove us to know the current betting odds, as set by top-rated online sportsbooks. As it stands, the Avalanche are the favorites to capture the championship. Here are the betting lines:
Both teams took very different paths to earn a Finals berth. Colorado blew through the West with the conference’s best regular-season record and a 12-2 playoff run. When Game 1 begins on Wednesday, they’ll be playing on a full eight days’ rest — thanks to a quick sweep of Edmonton in the conference finals. They also own home-ice advantage in this series. Add all factors up and it’s no surprise why the Avs are the team to beat across popular betting sites.
Tampa Bay, on the other hand, has survived a much rougher path. They outlasted two perennial Stanley Cup contenders — Toronto and Florida — in the first two rounds. Its star forward, Brayden Point, has been injured (and remains so) since the start of the second round. Not only has that grueling run tired the Lightning’s legs, but so is the fact they’re now playing in its third straight Stanley Cup final. It’s a massive toll, but as the two-time reigning champs have shown, it hasn’t been too much for them — at least not yet.
Offensively, both teams are evenly matched. Each has multiple players that can beat you, however, the Avs might have the depth advantage. Still, the differences are small between both teams in that regard. But what we predict will actually be the Stanley Cup’s biggest difference-maker is the goaltenders. This is where the teams differ almost night and day.
For the Lightning, they possess perhaps the best player in the league at the position, Andrei Vasilevskiy. This postseason, Vasilevskiy and company are surrendering just 2.41 goals per game. Then there’s the Avalanche, who haven’t named a Game 1 starter at net yet. Usual starter Darcy Kuemper has been injured (but appears recovered now). Backup Pavel Francouz filled in admirably whilst Kuemper was out. And now, there’s a “goaltender controversy” of sorts with the team.
Honestly speaking, no matter who gets the starting nod for Colorado, they’ll pale in comparison to Vasilevskiy. Tampa’s goaltender will swing this series in his team’s direction — Vasilevskiy is that damn good. We’re betting on the Lightning to become the first NHL team since 1983 to win three straight Stanley Cup titles. History in the making, folks!
2022 Stanley Cup Finals: Series Outcome Pick
It’s one thing to predict who is going to win the FInals, but it’s completely another to pick in how many games. That’s the allure of the exact series outcome pick for the Stanley Cup, which makes up for its difficulty with massive payouts to winners. We mean, just look at the current betting odds across the board:
| Outcome |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 | +2000 | +2000 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 | +1000 | +1000 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 | +550 | +550 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning 4-3 | +600 | +600 |
| Colorado Avalanche 4-0 | +850 | +850 |
| Colorado Avalanche 4-1 | +400 | +400 |
| Colorado Avalanche 4-2 | +350 | +350 |
| Colorado Avalanche 4-3 | +375 | +375 |
We’re already on record saying Tampa is taking this series, which disqualifies all the betting options for a Colorado victory. Moreover, we also don’t think this series will be particularly easy for the Lightning. In fact, we’d argue the Avalanche will be their toughest Finals opponent yet. Unlike the previous two years, Tampa is legit facing the Western Conference’s best team (apologies to Dallas and Montreal fans in advance).
While everyone is quick to point out Colorado will face its toughest goaltender yet (which is true), the same can be said about Vasilevskiy battling the best offense yet. After all, this is an Avalanche side that ranked first league-wide in regular-season scoring at 3.76 goals per game. That potent offense might be getting Nazem Kadri back from injury too, which will only make Vasilevskiy’s job harder than it already is. Given all that, we’re inclined to say this series almost HAS to go six or seven games. Anything else would be quite shocking.
Our final prediction is Tampa takes the series 4-2. They will steal one game in Colorado and then take the rest inside their own arena to clinch a third straight championship in Game 6. While we love the talent level of the Avalanche, they lack the experience and grit that their counterparts do, which will be their ultimate undoing.
How To Bet On 2022 NHL Stanley Cup Finals?
If you need a one-stop-shop to bet on the 2022 NHL Stanley Cup Finals, then look no further than the underneath table. We’ve listed the very best bookmakers carrying Stanley Cup odds — not only the two we covered above but a plethora more (including individual matchups). Sportsbook sign-ups are fast and easy, which means you can go from reading this sentence to wagering within minutes.
This is your last opportunity to gamble on the NHL for months so you don’t want to miss out. For bettors want to “game plan” what’s left of the season, we’ve included the full 2022 Stanley Cup schedule below:
About the Author
Eric is uniquely suited to be a writer for SBS. For one, he's a journalist by trade. Eric spent a large part of his career, covering sports — high school, college, and professional — for newspapers and online-based sites. However, Eric is a bettor himself too. He has first-hand experience hanging out in smoky sportsbooks and casinos, dealing with the ebbs and flows of gambling, and an understanding of how bookies operate. Both these unique qualities make him an expert bet picker for SBS. You'll also see Eric report on the sports betting industry as a whole.
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