The St. Louis Blues once looked like the clear favorite in the Western Conference, but a late-season collapse to fall out of the conference’s top spot leaves the picture much less clear heading into the first round of the NHL’s Western Conference playoffs.
NHL Western Conference playoff betting, Blues favored in Stanley Cup odds
St. Louis skidded to the finish line in the reguular season, but oddsmakers believe the Blues will take their foot off the brake in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Dilip Vishwanat
Regardless, oddsmakers are looking past this late swoon by the Blues and made them the favorite to win the Western Conference and to play Boston in the Stanley Cup finals.
See game odds, series betting lines and updated odds to win the Stanley Cup, all courtesy of Odds Shark, the lines partner to SBNation.
Dallas Stars +165 vs. Anaheim Ducks -175 - Game 1 on Wednesday in Anaheim
The Anaheim Ducks (9/1 to win the Stanley Cup) finished the season on a 7-2 run to lock up the best record in the Western Conference. Dallas (50/1) earned a wild card spot over Phoenix with an 8-4 run at the end of the season, and with a 2-1 record against the Ducks this season will try to play the role of spoiler in this series.
Overall, Dallas is 10-5 in past 15 meetings with Ducks, which has some underdog bettors paying close attention here.
Chicago Blackhawks +120 vs. St. Louis Blues -130 - Game 1 on Thursday in St. Louis
The St. Louis Blues (6/1) were 52-17-7 before ending their season on an 0-6 skid. The Blues were outscored 22-5 over that stretch, and now are tasked with facing the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks who are set to get Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane back from injury.
St. Louis won this season series 3-2, but Chicago has won its last two games against the Blues. It was part of 1-6 run for the Blues against divisional opponents.
Minnesota Wild +130 vs. Colorado Avalanche -140 - Game 1 on Thursday in Colorado
Easily the biggest surprise team of the season, the Colorado Avalanche (14/1) jumped out to a 12-1 start to the season and never slowed down, winning the Central Division with a 52-22-8 record. They take on the Minnesota Wild (40/1) in the first round, who enter the postseason on a 6-1-1 run.
Colorado was 4-0-1 against the Wild this season. But the Wild is 7-3 in its past 10 trips to Denver, while Colorado is 12-3 past 15 games as favorites.
Los Angeles Kings +130 vs. San Jose Sharks -140 - Game 1 on Thursday in San Jose
For the third time in four years, the Los Angeles Kings (10/1 to win the Stanley Cup) and San Jose Sharks (9/1) are meeting in the postseason. Last year, the Kings won a seven-game series in which the home team won every game.
San Jose has home ice advantage this time around, but is just 1-3-1 in five games against the Kings this season. Los Angeles is just 1-10 past 11 trips to San Jose, while UNDER bettors are locking in their wagers based on this angle - the Kings have played OVER just twice in 18 road games vs division foes.
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