Stanley Cup playoff betting - NHL Odds, futures and picks

The Boston Bruins set new NHL single-season records for wins and points, so naturally they're the favorite to win the Stanley Cup. The Bruins are the +320 choice to raise the Cup, per Caesars Sportsbook. The Colorado Avalanche, last season's Stanley Cup champion, are the second choice at +700.

BetMGM notes that 26.5% of the tickets for Stanley Cup champion have the Bruins' name on them. Boston also has close to 40% of the handle.

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But history doesn't favor the Bruins. There have been 36 Presidents' Trophy winners for having the league's best record. Only 11 of them advanced to the Stanley Cup Final, and only eight of those teams hoisted the Cup. Only three teams in the salary cap era (since 2005-06) have won the Presidents' Trophy and advanced to the Stanley Cup Final. Since the NHL went to the wild-card format in 2013-14, there hasn't been a single Presidents' Trophy winner that has advanced to the Stanley Cup Final.

So fading the Bruins isn't out of the question. The question is where to turn for other wagers? Here are a few Stanley Cup playoffs picks on futures, series wins and MVP.

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Odds from Caesars Sportsbook as of April 14 unless otherwise noted.

(per DraftKings Sportsbook)

This is way too much juice to pass up. I get the logic, the Bruins are record-setting juggernaut the likes that the NHL regular season has never seen before. Any team that runs that wagon off the road will either become a Stanley Cup favorite or clear the way for another elite Eastern Conference team.

But the Western Conference isn't simply going to be a bunch of NPCs going through the motions while the East beats the