NHL Playoffs Second Round Odds

Eight teams have been eliminated and just eight teams remain as the NHL Playoff second round odds are live and updated at BetRivers.com. Get the latest online sports betting PA odds on the NHL Playoff only with BetRivers Pennsylvania.

In the East Division, the No. 2 seed Boston Bruins take on the No. 3 seed New York Islanders in the second round. In the Central Division, the No. 1 seed Carolina Hurricanes face the No. 3 seed Tampa Bay Lightning in the second round. The winner of Boston vs. New York will face the winner of Carolina vs. Tampa Bay for a spot in the Stanley Cup Finals. In the West Division, the two best teams in the NHL face off as the No. 1 seed Colorado Avalanche face the No. 2 seed Vegas Golden Knights in the second round. The inverse happened in the North Division, as the No. 4 seed Montreal Canadiens rallied from a 3-1 series deficit to eliminate the No. 1 seed Toronto Maple Leafs and the No. 3 seed Winnipeg Jets swept Connor McDavid and the No. 2 seed Edmonton Oilers. The winner of Winnipeg vs. Montreal will play the winner of Colorado vs. Vegas for the other spot in the 2021 Stanley Cup Final.

Longtime broadcaster and gambling expert David Tuchman is here to detail the Stanley Cup Playoff second round odds and analyze his futures picks and predictions.

And we’re finally into the second round of the playoffs. We’re up about four units with three outstanding bets remaining:

  • Vegas Golden Knights to win the WEST +375
  • New York Islanders to win the EAST +475
  • Boston Bruins to win the Championship +1800

The Toronto Maple Leafs had another memorable collapse – this time to their rival, Montreal Canadiens. Each and every year, the Leafs seem to be overrated and this year proved to be no different, but even I didn’t see this one coming. 

Let’s examine the NHL Playoffs second round odds and look at some futures bets worth a wager.

RELATED: HOCKEY BETS, EXPLAINED | NHL SERIES ODDS

NHL Playoffs Second Round Odds: East Division

#3 Boston Bruins vs. #4 New York Islanders
Game 1: 5-2, Bruins
Game 2: 4-3 (OT), Islanders
Game 3: Bruins (-134 ML) at Islanders (+116 ML, O/U5). Thursday, 6/3. 7:30 p.m. ET
Game 4: Bruins at Islanders. Saturday, 6/5. 7:15 p.m. ET
Game 5: Islanders at Bruins. Monday, 6/7
Game 6: Bruins at Islanders. Wednesday, 6/9
Game 7: Islanders at Bruins. Friday, 6/11

Click here for Islanders-Bruins Game 3 odds.

Boston dominated Game 1 and most of the pundits and fans thought this would be a quick series, but the Isles came back strong in Game 2 and evened it up.  The Islanders are underdogs and probably should be. Boston has more depth, and is healthier.  As for the Isles, they continue to be perpetually underrated and overlooked – just the way they like it. 

The Bruins and Islanders are built in similar ways – they both have great goaltending and focus on defense. The good news for Boston is that the Isles have no answer for their first line – “The Perfection line” 

Can the Islanders win the series? Absolutely. Is it likely to happen? No.

Boston went from -210, to -430 and now back to -200 to win the series. While I do think Boston ultimately wins this series, I’m not a fan at these prices. What I might look to do is bet on the Bruins should they lose Game 3 in Long Island. 

Keep in mind, we bet on the Islanders to win the EAST at +475 before the playoffs began so if The islanders do win Game 3, I’d be hedging that bet and ensuring a profit. 

NHL Playoffs Second Round Odds: West Division

#1 Colorado Avalanche vs. #2 Vegas Golden Knights
Game 1: 7-1, Avalanche
Game 2: Golden Knights (+170 ML) at Avalanche (-200 ML/O/U5.5). Wednesday, 6/2. 10 p.m. ET
Game 3: Avalanche at Golen Knights. Friday, 6/4. 10 p.m. ET
Game 4: Avalanche at Golden Knights. Sunday, 6/6. 8:30 p.m. ET
Game 5: Golden Knights at Avalanche. Tuesday, 6/8
Game 6: Avalanche at Golden Knights. Thursday, 6/10
Game 7: Golden Knights at Avalanche. Saturday, 6/12

Click here for Avalanche-Golden Knights Game 2 odds.

If you watched the series vs the Blues and Game 1 vs the Knights, you might be thinking, “Can the Avalanche go 16-0 in these playoffs – Will they ever lose?” 

Colorado is an excellent team and Nathan Mackinnon is from a different planet. I’m not suggesting they are going to lose this series, but I do think they are a tad overrated at this point. As bad as Vegas looked in Game 1, it was still just one game. Vegas is a proud, veteran-led team that I expect to answer the bell in Game 2. 

As of now, Colorado is -500 to win the series. That is utterly ridiculous and just an absolute lack of respect for how good Vegas is. Remember, these teams tied for the most points in the league during the regular season. Nazem Kadri of Colorado is still suspended – they didn’t miss him in Game 1, but the Avalanche don’t have a ton of depth at center and this could hurt them going forward. As for the Golden Knights, Max Pacioretty, Vegas’ leading goal scorer is back from injury. He scored a goal in the clincher vs Minnesota and as he rounds back into shape, he could be a difference-maker. 

This is one of those overreaction value spots I mention all the time. Do I think Vegas wins this series? Probably not. Do I think they win it often enough for us to make money betting on them at +380? Absolutely!  Right now, Vegas is +160 in Game 2 vs. Colorado. It can be terrifying betting against this Colorado team right now and they could very easily make me look dumb, but I still think these teams are a lot closer than the line would indicate. I’m betting on Vegas to win the series at +380 and I’ll bet on them to win this game. 

NHL Playoffs Second Round Odds: Central Division

#1 Carolina Hurricanes vs. #3 Tampa Bay Lightning
Game 1: 2-1, Lightning
Game 2: 2-1, Lightning
Game 3: Hurricanes (+133) at Lightning (-157, O/U5.5). Thursday, 6/3. 8 p.m. ET
Game 4: Hurricanes at Lightning. Saturday, 6/5. 4 p.m ET
Game 5: Lightning at Hurricanes. Tuesday, 6/8
Game 6: Hurricanes at Lightning. Thursday, 6/10
Game 7: Lightning at Hurricanes. Saturday, 6/12

Click here for Hurricanes-Lightning Game 3 odds.

Despite Carolina being the No. 1 seed in the division and having home ice, it was Tampa that was the favorite. 

And we bet on Tampa. These are two of the best teams in the league – the reason we prefer the Lightning is the return of Nikita Kucherov from his season-long injury and their significant edge in net. Andrei Vasilevskiy might be the best goalie on the planet. 

All this said, Tampa defeated Carolina 2-1 in Game 1 and the odds are now very much in their favor. At this point, if I was betting (I’m not), I’d probably be firing on Carolina at +216. I can see this series going seven games.

NHL Playoffs Second Round Odds: North Division

#3 Winnipeg Jets vs. #4 Montreal Canadiens
Game 1: Canadiens (+118) at Jets (-139, O/U5.5). Wednesday, 6/2. 7:30 p.m. ET
Game 2: Canadiens at Jets. Friday, 6/4. 7:30 p.m. ET
Game 3: Jets at Canadiens. Sunday, 6/6. 6 p.m. ET
Game 4: Jets at Canadiens. Monday, 6/7
Game 5:Canadiens at Jets. Wednesday, 6/9
Game 6:Jets at Canadiens. Friday, 6/11
Game 7:Canadiens at Jets. Sunday, 6/13

Click here for Jets-Canadiens Game 1 odds.

Most people expected the second round to be Connor McDavid vs. Auston Mathews, but the Leafs collapsed as they so often do and the Winnipeg Jets were able to stifle Edmonton’s big guns.

Montreal was without their best player, Brendan Gallagher, for the last few weeks of the season and barely limped into the playoffs. He returned for round one and scored a goal in Game 7 vs. Toronto. An effective, healthy Brendan Gallagher will go a long way in helping Montreal advance. 

As for Winnipeg, this is an interesting team because they have a netminder, Connor Hellebuyck, who can put a team on his back when he’s hot. They have some very talented offensive players in Mark Scheifele, Nikolaj Ehlers, Kyle Connor and Pierre-Luc Dubois. A few years ago, this team was on everyone’s radar – it looked like they might be the next great team, but then it didn’t happen. Some players didn’t develop, some defensive issues and here we are …. Coming off a sweep of Edmonton, I’m not sure if anyone is really taking Winnipeg seriously and I’ve got a feeling they could be this season’s Cinderella story. 

The Winnipeg Jets are currently -125 vs Montreal so they are the favorite, but I think they’re even better than that. I’ll be betting on the Jets to win this series. 

Stanley Cup Championship Odds

Colorado Avalanche +135
Tampa Bay Lightning +400
Boston Bruins +550
Vegas Golden Knights +900
Carolina Hurricanes +1300
New York Islanders +1400
Winnipeg Jets +1500
Montreal Canadiens +1700

Click here for the full list of Stanley Cup odds.

Conn Smythe Trophy (Playoff MVP) 

Nathan MacKinnon, COL (+175)
Nikita Kucherov, TB (+700)
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB (+900)
Tuukka Rask, BOS (+900)
Marc-Andre Fleury, LVS (+1500)

Click here for the full list of Conn Smythe Trophy odds.

This award almost always goes to a player on the Cup-winning team. A player from the losing team has only won it five times and it hasn’t happened since 2003 when J.S. Giguere won it playing for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.

So, when looking at this futures bet, we want to evaluate a team’s chances to win the cup and then look at who’s likely to be the guy who is perceived to be the most valuable should they do it. A goalie hasn’t won the award since 2012 – that doesn’t mean it won’t happen this season, but it’s not like the NFL where the QB wins the MVP award more often than not. 

You watched Colorado play and you think there’s no way they aren’t winning the Cup. You can bet on them to win the Cup at +135 or you can bet on Nathan Mackinnon to win the MVP at +175. This is Mackinnon’s team. If they win the Championship, he’s getting the Conn Smythe.

Tampa Bay Lightning are +400 to repeat. If you think they’re likely to do it, betting on Nikita Kucherov at +700 is intriguing. He’s currently tied with Mackinnon for the most points in the playoffs. Tampa also has arguably the best goaltender in the world so betting on Andrei Vasilevskiy at +900 could be smart. 

I bet on the Boston Bruins to win the Stanley Cup at +1800 ten weeks ago. They’re currently +550. If you think they will win the Cup, David Pastrnak +1400, Brad Marchand +1700 and Patrice Bergeron +2000 are three of the players who could win the Conn Smythe. For my money, I prefer betting on Marchand or Bergeron. 

If Vegas comes back and shocks Colorado, they’ll suddenly be favorites to win it all. If they do, we’ll have our first goalie Conn Smythe winner since 2012. It’ll almost definitely be Marc-Andre Fleury; he’s currently at +1500. Considering that Vegas is +900 to win the Cup, this is an interesting flyer. 

Some longshots who might be worth firing on:

If I’m right, and the Winnipeg Jets are this year’s Cinderella team, it’ll be because of Connor Hellebuyck – he’s currently at +1900 to win the Conn Smythe. I just don’t think the Jets can win it all.

Sebastian Aho is +2000 – As I mentioned earlier, Carolina is a heck of a hockey team. I think they take Tampa Bay to the brink and if I’m wrong and somehow they win, they’ll be legitimate threats to win it all. If they do, Aho will be the guy to watch.