NHL playoff series odds for the first round: Maple Leafs, Oilers favoured to advance

The first round of the NHL playoffs is mostly complete with six of eight series ready to go.

The latest: There are some must-see matchups for hockey fans in Round 1. The Toronto Maple Leafs will host the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Edmonton Oilers battle with the Los Angeles Kings and the New York Rangers take on the New Jersey Devils.

Here are the latest NHL playoff series odds for the first round.

NHL playoff series odds

All NHL odds as of 10:58 a.m. ET on 04/14/2023.

The entire Eastern Conference playoff picture is complete while the Western Conference will be locked in after Friday night’s action.

Colorado visits the Nashville Predators and a win would secure the Central Division for the Avalanche and a date with the Seattle Kraken. A loss, however, would see the Avs meet the Minnesota Wild in the first round.

The Dallas Stars currently occupy the top spot in the Central, holding a one-point lead over the Avs. Dallas will face either the Kraken or Wild depending on its finishing spot.

Eastern Conference odds

Florida Panthers vs. Boston Bruins

Florida won six of its last eight games down the stretch to clinch the second wild-card spot in the East. The team’s prize for its hard work is a date with the record-setting Bruins.

The NHL can be cruel that way, but the Panthers held their own against the Bruins this past season. The two teams met four times, with the Cats scoring a pair of victories. Florida’s spotty postseason history, however, is cause for concern.

So is the fact that the Bruins set an NHL record for wins (65) and points (135) in a single season.

New York Islanders vs. Carolina Hurricanes

New York added Bo Horvat before the trade deadline and went 17-9-4 following the acquisition. That was good enough to secure the first wild-card spot and a playoff matchup with Carolina.

The Canes won three of four meetings against the Isles this season but aren’t in the finest of form ahead of the postseason.

The team is just 9-9-1 since star forward Andrei Svechnikov suffered a season-ending injury.

Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

These two teams need no introduction. Tampa Bay and Toronto met under the exact same circumstances a year ago, with the Lightning downing the Leafs in seven games.

This is a new year, however, and there are plenty of differences. The two main ones are the additions of Ryan O’Reilly and Ilya Samsonov for the Maple Leafs.

Will it be enough, however, to top the three-time running Eastern Conference champs and advance out of the first round for the first time since 2004?

Time will tell but we’ll get our first indication when the two teams meet for Game 1 in Toronto on Tuesday night. As of Friday afternoon, the Lightning were a +125 underdog for Game 1 — the same odds they have to win the series.

New York Rangers vs. New Jersey Devils

The Hudson River Rivalry renews for the first time since 2012. After missing the playoffs entirely last season, New Jersey claimed the second spot in the Metropolitan Division and home-ice advantage in the series.

The Devils won the season series 3-1, but these squads are as evenly matched as the series odds indicate.

Three of the four contests were one-score games and two of them went to overtime.

Western Conference odds

Los Angeles Kings vs. Edmonton Oilers

Los Angeles and Edmonton are first-round dance partners once again. These two went the distance in last year’s postseason, and it was the Oilers who came from behind to win in seven games.

The Kings and Oilers split the regular-season series this past year. The latter won the two most recent matchups, however, which were two crucial victories that helped land Edmonton home-ice advantage in this series.

Led by superstars Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, who won the Art Ross and will surely secure his third MVP award, the Oilers are the No. 3 choice to win the Cup at +700 (behind Boston and Colorado).

Winnipeg Jets vs. Vegas Golden Knights

Winnipeg won five of seven games to close out the season, good enough to score the second wild-card spot in the West.

Connor Hellebuyck should get the best spot on the team plane and all his meals covered for his share of the team’s success. The netminder started 18 of the team’s final 21 games, sporting an 11-7-0 record with a .915 save percentage.

Vegas swept the season series 3-0, but these two squads haven’t met since 2022.

Winnipeg’s goaltending stability could be a path to victory against a Golden Knights squad that hasn’t had much of that.