The Colorado Avalanche are the only team that has made it to the conference semifinals of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs after sweeping the Nashville Predators. The Pittsburgh Penguins lead the New York Rangers, 3-1, and the other six series are all knotted at two games apiece. Today we’re going to take a look at some of the possible Stanley Cup Final matchups as you think about your online NHL betting down the stretch.
NHL News: Stanley Cup Matchups
Colorado Avalanche vs Florida Panthers
This would be the matchup between the favorites in each conference. Top seeds have a way of falling by the wayside in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and Florida looked vulnerable after letting a 2-0 lead in Game 1 turn into a 4-2 defeat. Washington won Game 3 in decisive fashion – but then the Panthers rallied to win Game 4, 3-2, in overtime. The only team that looks like a clear winner in the East so far is Pittsburgh, as the Penguins have hung 14 goals on the Rangers in the last two games. Washington, frankly, looks hungrier in this first-round series, but if the Panthers can figure out their defensive zone for long enough, they should be able to win anyway. But after a draining first-round series, will the Panthers be able to get through two more rounds to the Cup Final?
Colorado Avalanche vs Pittsburgh Penguins
Right now, the Penguins look like the team to beat in the East. Sidney Crosby has turned back the clock in this postseason, likely the last for a core that has brought a lot of success to the Penguins, and despite playing a third-string goaltender, the Penguins are winning. New York was getting a lot of press about netminder Igor Shesterkin, but he only played three of the six periods in Pittsburgh – and he gave up 10 goals in the process. In fact, after going down 2-0 in Game 1, the Penguins have outscored the Rangers, 18-13 – and that includes a 5-2 Rangers win in Game 2. This sort of momentum has carried other teams to the Cup Final in the past, and Crosby shows no signs of slowing down.
Dallas Stars vs Toronto Maple Leafs
Remember the bubble Stanley Cup? The Stars rode a hot goaltender, Anton Khudobin, all the way to the Cup Final where they fell to Tampa Bay. The Stars are tied with Calgary, 2-2, but there has really only been one period (the third period in Game 4) when the Stars’ defense remembered that it can be dreadful. Jake Oettinger has been terrific in net, and with the series heading back north, if the Stars can steal Game 5 on the road, they have two chances to knock off the Flames. Of course, they would have to get by Colorado to get to a Cup Final, but with the current moneyline on Dallas, it’s an interesting value flyer.
Calgary Flames vs Toronto Maple Leafs
An all-Canada Stanley Cup Final would be exciting, and the Flames have the offensive firepower and the goaltending to make it through the gauntlet known as the West. Toronto has undressed Tampa Bay twice – and has looked sloppy twice – in a 2-2 series. The Maple Leafs have a lot of pressure on their shoulders, with a Cup drought extending back to the 1966-67 season, but Tampa Bay is not firing on all cylinders, and the rest of the Eastern Conference teams all have significant flaws as well.
Edmonton Oilers vs Boston Bruins
The Oilers, of course, might not get out of the first round, if they cannot get through the defensive swamp that the L.A. Kings have placed before them. If their offensive talent can figure things out, though, the Oil could be ready for a deep run. Boston has one of the higher ceilings offensively in the East, but their defense betrays them over and over. Their puck movement is elite, though, and as Pittsburgh is showing us, it doesn’t take much to get from solid movement to goals in bunches.
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