2022 Stanley Cup Finals: Best Future Bets To Place Right Now

We’re down to the final four teams in the quest for the Stanley Cup. The Colorado Avalanche, Edmonton Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning, and New York Rangers are all fighting to hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup, but only one club will be victorious.

With just an eighth of the NHL in action, there are fewer betting options than ever before. However, there are still a couple of examples of outstanding value available on the Stanley Cup betting market. 

New York Rangers (+650)

The Rangers did the seemingly impossible in the second round — defeating the Carolina Hurricanes on opposing ice. They’ll now have to face the Tampa Bay Lightning; the Stanley Cup champs two years running.

However, you should be running to the sportsbook to bet the Rangers to win it all.

New York’s 52-24-6 regular-season record narrowly bested Tampa Bay’s 51-23-8 mark, giving the Rangers home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference Finals. While home ice in the NHL isn’t as impactful as home-court advantage in the NBA, it still slightly boosts New York’s chances of dethroning the champs.

But the Rangers best chance at winning the Cup is because of who’s in net. Igor Shesterkin was arguably the sport’s top goaltender in the regular season, becoming one of the three finalists for the Hart Trophy. The 26-year-old has continued his dominance in the playoffs, registering a .928 save percentage and making close to 34 saves a game.

The Rangers also have two of the postseason’s top point producers — Mika Zibanejad and Adam Fox. But a hot goalie is tough to beat, and New York might have the best goalie in the league protecting its crease.

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Connor McDavid +1100 (Conn Smythe)

Most hockey fans would agree that Connor McDavid is the best player left in the playoffs. In fact, the two-time Hart winner is probably the NHL’s best player in general. Yet his Edmonton Oilers are a distant fourth in Stanley Cup betting odds at +1000.

But if Edmonton manages to sneak past the dynamic Avalanche in the Western Conference Finals, look for McDavid to become the favorite to win the Conn Smythe Trophy immediately.

Annually given to the top postseason performer, the Conn Smythe is an award fit for McDavid. The 25-year-old leads the league in postseason points, racking up 29 points in 13 games. For context, only eight Conn Smythe winners have finished the playoffs with more points, and that’s with Connor just one game into the conference finals.

McDavid could reach the 40-point mark before the Stanley Cup Finals if he continues at this pace. If he reaches that point, he’ll have a chance to pass Wayne Gretzky (47) for the most points in a single postseason.

The Oilers will have to beat Colorado, which is no easy task. But with Avs goalie Darcy Kuemper suffering an injury in Game 1, the window is open for Edmonton to pull off the upset.

From there, the Oilers wouldn’t even have to win the Finals for McDavid to capture the Conn Smythe. Five players have won the Conn Smythe despite losing the series in the end, though four of them were goaltenders.

McDavid is such a special player capable of magical things on the ice. If any player can win this trophy without his team hoisting the Cup, it’s him.