The 2019-20 NHL regular season is officially over and hockey fans now wait for a 24-team playoff format to begin later this summer. The interruption in the NHL has created a never-before-seen wrinkle in the hunt for the Stanley Cup. Below, we’ll look at the betting odds to win the Eastern Conference and make our picks and best bets to make it to the Stanley Cup final.
2019-20 NHL Eastern Conference Odds: Favorites
Odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list.
Odds last updated Thursday, May 28 at 1:30 p.m. ET.
| TEAM | ODDS |
| Boston Bruins | +300 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | +300 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | +450 |
| Washington Capitals | +450 |
Tampa Bay Lightning (+300)
The Lightning suffered one of the worst playoffs collapses on memory a year ago. The Presidents’ Trophy champions were swept in four games in the first round by the Columbus Blue Jackets while being outscored 19-8.
The lengthy pause in the 2019-20 NHL season has allowed C Steven Stamkos (abdomen) and D Victor Hedman (lower body) to return to full health. Heavily-used starting G Andrei Vasilevskiy will also be well-rested and back in top form after seeming to tire out in last year’s postseason.
The Lightning led the league with 245 goals scored in 70 games. Only the Bruins (plus-53) had a better goal differential than the Lightning’s plus-50. Look for them to use the extended time off and a Qualification Round bye to correct their wrongs from 2018-19.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Lightning to win the Eastern Conference returns a profit of $30.
Get some action on the NHL playoffs by placing a legal sports bet (in NJ, IN, CO and WV) at BetMGM.com.
2019-20 NHL Eastern Conference Odds: Long shots
| TEAM | ODDS |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | +1100 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | +1700 |
| New York Islanders | +2200 |
| New York Rangers | +2200 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | +2400 |
| Blue Jackets | +2800 |
| Florida Panthers | +2800 |
| Montreal Canadiens | +5000 |
Columbus Blue Jackets (+2800)
The Blue Jackets loaded up at the 2018-19 NHL trade deadline and went on to win the franchise’s first playoff series since entering the league in 2000-01. Things seemed to fall apart in the offseason, as C Matt Duchene, C Ryan Dzingel and G Sergei Bobrovsky all departed via free agency.
The Jackets may have been destined to miss the playoffs under a normal 16-team format, as they sat at 33-22-15 through 70 games. They suffered a league-worst 15 overtime losses, including a 0-4 record in shootouts.
The goaltending tandem of Joonas Korpisalo and Elvis Merzlikins will be the biggest key to a long postseason run. They posted save percentages of .911 and .923, respectively, in the regular season. They’ll be matched up against the Maple Leafs in the Qualification Round, but they may have the home-ice advantage as a final contender to be a postseason hub city.
Florida Panthers (+2800)
The free-agent addition of Bobrovsky in goal was supposed to help turn the Panthers around and make them a frontrunner in the Eastern Conference for the better part of the next 10 seasons. However, the former Vezina Trophy winner played to a save percentage of just .900 with a 3.23 goals against average across his first 50 games of the season and the Panthers sat at 35-26-8 at the pause.
A good Bobrovsky is still a top-four goaltender in the East and the Panthers have one of the deepest forward groups in the conference. Trusting goaltending and backing long shots will be the key to turning a profit at the sportsbooks in these unprecedented NHL playoffs.
Want some action in the 2019-20 NHL Playoffs? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.
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