We’re now 11 days and 39 games into the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs, and yet only one team — the Colorado Avalanche — has punched a ticket to the second round. That could change Thursday, as four clubs on the NHL playoff odds board have an opportunity to finish off their first-round opponents with Game 6 victories.
To do so, though, all four will have to pull off upsets. Yep, bookmakers are essentially forecasting a quartet of Game 7s, as every squad facing elimination Thursday is favored.
How many Game 6 underdogs will prove the experts wrong? Props.com breaks down NHL playoff odds and action for Thursday’s quartet of Game 6 matchups.
Odds via DraftKings and WynnBet and updated as of 6 p.m. ET on May 12.
NHL Playoff Odds: Hurricanes Vs Bruins (Game 6)
Puck Drop/TV: 7 p.m. ET/TNT
Moneyline: Bruins -120/Hurricanes +100
Puckline: Bruins -1.5 (+200)/Hurricanes +1.5 (-250)
Total: 6 (Over +105/Under -125)
Best-of-7 series: Carolina leads, 3-2
Adjusted series odds: Hurricanes -350/Bruins +270
Slap shots: Another Hurricanes-Bruins game, another blowout, with Carolina delivering the latest beatdown, a 5-1 rout in Tuesday’s Game 5. The Hurricanes went off as consensus -149 point home favorites. After the first four contests in this series sailed Over the total, Game 5 landed right on the 6-goal number.
Betting nuggets: The home team has now won all five games in this series, by near-identical scores: 5-1 (Game 1), 5-2 (Game 2), 4-2 (Game 3), 5-2 (Game 4) and 5-1 (Game 5). … Carolina is 6-2 against the Bruins this season, with a +21 goal differential (35-14). … The Hurricanes are 10-2 in the last 12 games. They’ve now tallied at least four goals in 12 of their last 14 contests. … Boston has allowed 27 goals in its last five road games, but only eight in its last seven at home. … The favorite is 5-0 in this series and 9-1 in the last 10 head-to-head clashes. Also, Boston is 6-0 in its last six as a chalk, while Carolina is 0-4 in its last four as an underdog (one overtime loss). … The Over is 6-0-1 in the last seven series meetings, 7-0-1 in Boston’s last seven overall and 8-0-1 in Carolina’s last nine.
Prediction: Bruins 5, Hurricanes 2
NHL Playoff Odds: Maple Leafs Vs Lightning (Game 6)
Puck Drop/TV: 7:30 p.m. ET/TBS
Moneyline: Lightning -140/Maple Leafs +120
Puckline: Lightning -1.5 (+175)/Maple Leafs +1.5 (-210)
Total: 6.5 (Over -115/Under -105)
Best-of-7 series: Toronto leads, 3-2
Adjusted series odds: Maple Leafs -350/Lightning +270
Slap shots: Toronto rallied from a 2-0 first-period deficit in Game 5 with three straight goals. After Tampa Bay scored the equalizer midway through the third period, Leafs star Auston Mathews potted the game-winner with about seven minutes to play. Toronto held on for a 4-3 victory as a consensus -135 favorite. Matthews’ goal pushed the game above the 6.5 total, the fourth straight Over in the series.
Betting nuggets: Game 5 was the first one-goal contest of the series. That ended a streak of seven straight head-to-head meetings decided by multiple goals. … Tuesday was the first time in the series that the winning side failed to put up at least five goals. Still, the teams have combined to find the back of the net 62 times in the last eight matchups (7.75 goals per game). … The Leafs are 17-4-2 dating to March 27. … Tampa Bay is 9-5 in its last 14. The Lightning also have won 16 consecutive games when coming off a playoff defeat. … The teams have combined for 16 third-period goals in the last four contests. … Seven of the last eight Lightning-Leafs battles have gone Over the total. The lone exception: Toronto’s 5-0 home win in Game 1. … The Over is also on overall runs of 17-5 for Tampa Bay overall, 7-1 for Tampa Bay at home, 14-4-5 for Toronto overall and 21-4-2 for Toronto on the road.
Prediction: Lightning 6, Maple Leafs 2
NHL Playoff Odds: Wild Vs Blues (Game 6)
Puck Drop/TV: 9:30 p.m. ET/TNT
Moneyline: Wild -110/Blues -110
Puckline: Wild +1.5 (-260); Blues -1.5 (+210)
Total: 6.5 (Over +100/Under -120)
Best-of-7 series: St. Louis leads, 3-2
Adjusted series odds: Blues -290/Wild +230
Slap shots: St. Louis overcame a 2-1 first-period deficit in Game 4 and scored the final four goals in a 5-2 blowout as a consensus +137 underdog. The last three tallies came off the stick of Vladimir Tarasenko. He became the third player in the series to record a hat trick. Tarasenko’s empty-netter with 93 seconds remaining slipped the game Over the 6.5-goal total.
Betting nuggets: The first five games in this series have been decided by margins of 4, 4, 4, 3 and 3 goals. … The Blues are 17-4-2 dating to March 28, including 7-2-1 at home. They’ve tallied at least four goals in 18 of those 23 games and posted 13 multi-goal victories. … Despite dropping the last two games, the Wild are still 21-5-3 in their last 29 overall, including 6-1-2 on the road. … The Blues are 8-2 against Minnesota in the last 10 meetings overall and 8-1 in the last nine in St. Louis. … The total has alternated in every game of the series, but the Over is still 10-3 in the last 13 series battles and 4-1 in the last five meetings in St. Louis. Also, the Blues are 22-8-1 to the Over in their last 31 overall.
Prediction: Blues 5, Wild 3
NHL Playoff Odds: Oilers Vs Kings (Game 6)
Puck Drop/TV: 9:30 p.m. ET/TBS
Moneyline: Oilers -140/Kings +120
Puckline: Oilers -1.5 (+155)/Kings +1.5 (-190)
Total: 6.5 (Over -105/Under -115)
Best-of-7 series: Los Angeles leads, 3-2
Adjusted series odds: Kings -160/Oilers +140
Slap shots: Los Angeles on Tuesday went off as a sizable underdog for the fifth straight time in the series — and for the third time, the Kings pulled off the upset. After blowing a 4-2 lead late in the third period, Los Angeles got a goal from Adrian Kempe just 72 seconds into overtime to escape with a 5-4 win as a consensus +191 ’dog. Despite a slow start (one first-period goal), the game easily hurdled the total.
Betting nuggets: Game 1 (4-3) and Game 5 were one-goal nailbiters. In between, the teams engaged in three straight blowouts (6-0, 8-2, 4-0). The winning team has found the back of the net at least four times in every game. … Edmonton is still on positive runs of 15-5-1 overall, 6-3 on the road and 7-4 against the Kings. On the flip side, the Oilers are 4-14 in their last 18 playoff contests (4-10 as a favorite). … Los Angeles is 8-3 overall but still just 3-10 in the playoffs since winning the 2014 Stanley Cup. … The total has alternated in all five games of this series and each of the last seven Edmonton-Los Angeles tussles. Also, going back to the regular season, the total has alternated in nine straight Oilers games and seven consecutive Kings contests. … Edmonton will be without defenseman Darnell Nurse, who was suspended one game for head-butting Kings center Phillip Danault in Game 5.
Prediction: Oilers 4, Kings 1
NHL Playoff Betting Odds & Action Updates
Hurricanes vs Bruins
UPDATED 5:25 P.M. ET THURSDAY: A little more than 90 minutes before puck drop, the Bruins have dipped from a -125 home favorite to -120 on the moneyline at DraftKings. The Hurricanes are +100. There’s solid two-way action, though, as Carolina is taking 51% of the bets and the Bruins 56% of the money. The total, which has been bouncing between 5.5 and 6, is back up to 6/Under -125. The vast majority of the wagers (88%) and cash (81%) is on the Over.
UPDATED 12:30 P.M. ET THURSDAY: Boston hit DraftKings’ Game 6 NHL playoff odds board as a -125 home favorite before ticking up to -130 midday Wednesday. The moneyline has since bounced between -120 and -130, with it currently back at the opener of Bruins -125/Hurricanes +110. Early ticket count is split right down the middle, while 57% of the early money is on visiting Carolina. The total was initially 6 (Under -120), then dipped to 5.5 (Over -120) on Wednesday afternoon. It has since toggled between 5.5 and 6 and is now at 5.5 (Over -120), with 87% of wagers and 75% of dollars on the Over.
Maple Leafs vs Lightning
UPDATED 5:25 P.M. ET THURSDAY: Some two hours before game time, the Lightning have nudged up from -130 to -140 on the moneyline at DraftKings. The home team is getting 67% of the bets and 84% of the money. The total has moved from 6.5 flat to 6.5/Over -115 on splits, with a whopping 90% of all wagers and 65% of the dollars on the Over.
UPDATED 12:30 P.M. ET THURSDAY: Tampa Bay was a -120 favorite overnight Tuesday at DraftKings, then quickly went to -130 in the wee hours Wednesday. The moneyline then inched up to -135 and (briefly) -140 before dialing back to -130, where it remains now. Toronto is +110 on the take-back, and the Lightning are taking 60% of early tickets and 86% of early cash. The total opened at 6.5 (Over -115), followed by quick juice adjustments to Over -120 and Over -125. The juice fluctuated up and down since but is now at 6.5 flat, with early betting splits of 89% tickets/53% money on the Over.
Wild vs Blues
UPDATED 6 P.M. ET THURSDAY: WynnBet opened the Blues as a -115 favorite on its NHL playoff odds board for Game 6 and the line held there until dipping to pick ’em at about 2 p.m. ET today. The moneyline remains -110 both ways amid two-way action that features 56% of the wagers on the home team and 77% of the money on the visitors. The total opened at 6.5/Under -120 and is holding there, even though most of the play at WynnBet is on the Over to the tune of 79% tickets/90% cash.
UPDATED 12:30 P.M. ET THURSDAY: This game has jumped the fence on DraftKings’ NHL playoff odds board. St. Louis was installed as a -115 favorite overnight Wednesday, but 13 hours later the game dropped to pick ’em. That’s where it remained until DraftKings went to Wild -115/Blues -105 a little more than an hour ago. Contrary to the line shift, the home team is netting 62% of tickets and 74% of the cash. The total opened at 6.5 (Over -125) and is now 6.5 (Under -115), with ticket count running 4/1 on the Over, but the money split almost 50-50.
Oilers vs Kings
UPDATED 6 P.M. ET THURSDAY: The Oilers opened as a -155 road chalk for Game 6 at WynnBet, but the number has trickled down from there, hitting -150, -145 and now -140. The Kings have moved from +135 to the current price of +120. While Los Angeles is drawing a whopping 85% of the dollars, the ticket count is closer to even with 55% on Edmonton/45% on L.A. The total hasn’t budged off the opener of 6.5/Under -115, although 70% of the wagers and 73% of the money is on the Over.
UPDATED 12:30 P.M. ET THURSDAY: Edmonton hit DraftKings’ NHL playoff odds board as a -150 favorite, but the moneyline has since taken several trips north and south. The Oilers fell to as low as -135 and bounced back as high as the opening number. Currently, the price is settled at Oilers -140/Kings +120, with 58% of wagers and 59% of dollars on Edmonton. The total opened at 6.5 (Over -115), then almost immediately went to 6.5 (Under -115), where it remains. A majority of the action is on the Over, at 72% bets/67% money.
