Whose Stanley Cup odds improved the most after the NHL Trade Deadline?
Anthony Scultore
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Prior to first game of the season, oddsmakers weighed in with their Stanley Cup favorites that included the Avs and Knights as the top teams to win it all.
The NHL Trade Deadline has passed and in the week since oddsmakers have assessed the moves updating the odds accordingly.
We know the Florida Panthers were the most aggressive team at the deadline as they unloaded plenty of future assets for rentals like Claude Giroux and Ben Chiarot. So what did that do to improve their Stanley Cup odds?
Which other teams moved up thanks to their deadline dealings? And which moved down? Let’s dive in.
Florida Panthers lead the pack for improved odds
The Panthers were a +800 in February on BetMGM and now come in at +550 thanks to their deadline acquisitions. That ranks second behind the Colorado Avalanche.
Claude Giroux, Ben Chiarot, and Robert Hagg have all contributed since being acquired. Giroux’s acquisition bolsters their offense as he’s playing with Aleksander Barkov. Meanwhile, getting both Chiarot and Hagg soften the blow of losing Aaron Eklblad.
Coming in tops to win the Cup are the Colorado Avalanche, who improved slightly from +450 to +375 after acquiring Josh Manson, Artturi Lehkonen, Nico Sturm, and Andrew Cogliano.
The Hurricanes went from +1600 to +1000 in a month. This is mostly due to their strong play but adding Max Domi to bolster their attack certainly helps.
Another big mover were the Boston Bruins, who jumped from +2200 to +1800 after making a big move to acquire Hampus Lindholm and Josh Brown to bolster their already strong defense.
The Rangers remain one of the biggest surprises of the season plugged several key holes leading up to and at the deadline. By adding Andrew Copp, Frank Vatrano, Tyler Motte, and Justin Braun they’ve gone from +2000 to +1800.
Of course, the biggest overall jump belongs to the Calgary Flames, who came into the season with a +3000 to win it all but now have the third best odds at +900. They added Calle Jarnkork at the deadline, but their biggest move came earlier with Tyler Toffoli.
Golden Knights plummet as others teams stumble
This was supposed to be the year for the Vegas Golden Knights, but right now they are at risk of missing the playoffs entirely thanks to a rash of injuries to key players.
Vegas is listed at +850 at BetMGM which tied them for fourth with the Maple Leafs in February. They have plummeted to a +1600 after a deadline where there biggest move was having a cap shedding deal voided due to Evgenii Dadonov’s no trade clause.
Another team that took a did are the aforementioned Maple Leafs, who now come in at +1200. Toronto was able to add Mark Giordano to help the defense, but was unable to improve their Achilles’ heel in goal. Marc-Andre Fleury could’ve certainly helped, but the Wild landed him instead.
The 2X defending Stanley Cup champions made two nice acquisitions in Nick Paul and Brandon Hagel but still stropped from +750 to +900.
This is more a byproduct of what teams like Florida and Boston did in the division to improve than anything against the Lightning moves.
Other Notable Odds
- The Pittsburgh Penguins come in at +1600
- After netting Marc-Andre Fleury the Minnesota Wild are a +2000
- St. Louis Blues +2500
- Edmonton Oilers +3000
- Washington Capitals +3000
