Early 2024 Stanley Cup odds favor the Colorado Avalanche

Can Colorado rebound after an injury-plagued season to defend their title from 2022?

DENVER — Look for a bounceback in 2024 for the 2022 Stanley Cup champions.

That's what the good people at Fanduel are expecting, at least.

The Colorado Avalanche are the early favorites to win the Cup next year, followed by the Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers.

The Vegas Golden Knights - who have yet to participate in their Cup parade after winning earlier this week - are among a group of teams with the third-highest odds.

Here's the entire list:

1. Colorado Avalanche    +800
2. Toronto Maple Leafs    +1100
3. Edmonton Oilers    +1100
4. Boston Bruins    +1300
5. New Jersey Devils    +1300
6. Carolina Hurricanes    +1300
7. Vegas Golden Knights    +1300
8. Tampa Bay Lightning    +1300
9. New York Rangers    +1500
10. Dallas Stars    +1700
11. Florida Panthers    +2000
12. Los Angeles Kings    +2000
13. Minnesota Wild    +3200
14. Calgary Flames    +3200
15. Pittsburgh Penguins    +3500
16. Ottawa Senators    +3800
17. Buffalo Sabres    +4000
18. Winnipeg Jets    +4000
19. New York Islanders    +4500
20. Nashville Predators    +5000
21. Vancouver Canucks    +5000
22. Detroit Red Wings    +5000
23. Seattle Kraken    +5000
24. St. Louis Blues    +5500
25. Washington Capitals    +5500
26. Chicago Blackhawks    +9000
27. Philadelphia Flyers    +9000
28. Montreal Canadiens    +12000
29. Columbus Blue Jackets    +13000
30. Arizona Coyotes    +13000
31. San Jose Sharks    +14000
32. Anaheim Ducks    +15000

The Avalanche got bounced early from the playoff this year, but Colorado was dealing with a bevy of injuries, including to captain Gabriel Landeskog, who's already been ruled out of action in 2023-24. 

What that does, though, is afford Colorado with the luxury of putting his contract on LTIR and adding to a roster that remains star studded with the likes of Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, and Cale Makar.

Interestingly, the regular season champion Boston Bruins remain high on the list despite some roster uncertainty heading into next season, while the defending Eastern Conference champion Florida Panthers sit outside the top ten (and seventh in the conference).

Toronto is also an interesting case as new general manager Brad Treliving has yet to make his mark on the club.

There's certainly fewer teams out West with favorable odds, and perhaps it might finally be the year that Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and the rest of the Edmonton Oilers break through.

Provided they can withstand the Avalanche, that is.