NHL Playoffs 2020: 1st-Round Schedule, Top Stanley Cup Contenders

Last year, the St. Louis Blues won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Now, they'll be looking to be the first team to win it in back-to-back years since the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017. But there are a lot of other strong contenders that are sure to pose a challenge.

With the round-robin seeding games and qualifying round over, the 16-team field for the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs is now set. And on Tuesday, four series will get underway with Game 1 matchups, followed by the other four series beginning Wednesday.

Here's a look at the upcoming schedule, current Stanley Cup odds and a breakdown of the top contenders.

Upcoming Schedule

Tuesday, Aug. 11

Game 1: No. 7 Columbus Blue Jackets at No. 2 Tampa Bay Lightning, 3 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network

Game 1: No. 6 Calgary Flames at No. 3 Dallas Stars, 5:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network

Game 1: No. 5 Carolina Hurricanes at No. 4 Boston Bruins, 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network

Game 1: No. 8 Chicago Blackhawks at No. 1 Vegas Golden Knights, 7:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network

Wednesday, Aug. 12

Game 1: No. 6 New York Islanders at No. 3 Washington Capitals, 3 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network

Game 1: No. 7 Arizona Coyotes at No. 2 Colorado Avalanche, 5:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network

Game 1: No. 8 Montreal Canadiens at No. 1 Philadelphia Flyers, 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network

Game 1: No. 5 Vancouver Canucks at No. 4 St. Louis Blues, 10:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network

Complete first-round playoff schedule available at NHL.com.

Stanley Cup Odds

Vegas Golden Knights +450 (bet $100 to win $450)

Tampa Bay Lightning +500

Colorado Avalanche +600

Boston Bruins +600

St. Louis Blues +900

Philadelphia Flyers +900

Washington Capitals +1400

Dallas Stars +1500

Carolina Hurricanes +2000

Vancouver Canucks +2500

Calgary Flames +2500

Chicago Blackhawks +3000

New York Islanders +3000

Arizona Coyotes +3200

Montreal Canadiens +4000

Columbus Blue Jackets +4200

Odds obtained via Caesars Palace

Top Stanley Cup Contenders

Vegas Golden Knights (+450)

In 2018, the Golden Knights reached the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season. They reached the playoffs again in 2019. Now, they're the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference for the first time in this year's postseason.

Vegas has a lot of momentum coming out of its qualifying-round series, as it went 3-0 against Colorado, Dallas and St. Louis, scoring 15 total goals in those matchups. The Golden Knights' most impressive victory was their 4-3 overtime win against the Avalanche, which was a winner-take-all matchup for the top seed.

While getting the No. 1 seed for the first time in franchise history is a big accomplishment (especially after they were third in the conference when the regular season was suspended), the Golden Knights have bigger aspirations as they look to win the Stanley Cup in only their third season. Vegas' quest begins with a first-round matchup against the Blackhawks, who are an experienced team despite being a big underdog this postseason.

Not only should the Golden Knights beat Chicago in the opening round, but they should remain one of the top contenders for the Stanley Cup deep into the postseason. And perhaps they will end the year with their first championship.

Tampa Bay Lightning (+500)

Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

The Lightning were one of the favorites to win the Stanley Cup heading into last year's playoffs. Then, they became the first No. 1 seed to get swept in the first round, losing to the No. 8-seeded Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round.

This year, Tampa Bay is looking to go much deeper into the postseason. But first, the Lightning will be taking on Columbus again in the opening round, so they will need to avoid an upset in consecutive years.

"What happened last year happened last year," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said, according to NHL.com's Mike Zeisberger. "That's in the history books forever. Now it's time to write your own history, and that's what we intend to do with this team.

Whether Tampa Bay can be a top Stanley Cup contender could depend on the team's health. Center Steven Stamkos missed all three of the team's round-robin seeding games with a lower-body injury, and now defenseman Victor Hedman is also dealing with a lower-body injury. Without them, Tampa Bay is still a solid team, but its Stanley Cup chances should improve with them in the fold.

Colorado Avalanche (+600)

David Zalubowski/Associated Press

The Avalanche haven't had many deep postseason runs in recent years. Dating back to 2008, they've lost five of their last six playoff series, with their only win coming in last year's first round against the Flames.

But Colorado is now much better equipped to potentially make a deep postseason run. Center Nathan MacKinnon is a Hart Trophy finalist after tallying 93 points (35 goals and 58 assists), fifth-most in the NHL. Rookie defenseman Cale Makar also had a strong season, as he was the team's second-leading scorer with 50 points (12 goals and 38 assists), helping to make him a finalist for the Calder Trophy.

"I don't think we have ever seen a stronger lineup than this in [my] tenure here, so this is very exciting and I think we are just scratching the surface on what we can do," Avalanche left winger Gabriel Landeskog said, according to NHL.com.

The Avalanche are playing one of the biggest underdogs in the field in the opening round, as they're set to take on Arizona. They should have no trouble winning that series, and then they could be in a good position to make it past the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2002.

Boston Bruins (+600)

Hannah Foslien/Associated Press

After coming one win shy of capturing the Stanley Cup last year, the Bruins rolled through the 2019-20 regular season. They were dominant en route to winning the Presidents' Cup, tallying 100 points, and they were cruising to the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

Then, the Bruins went 0-3 in the round-robin seeding games, which made them fall to the No. 4 seed. And instead of facing a big underdog in the first round, they now have to take on Carolina in a rematch of last year's Eastern Conference Final to open the postseason.

Although Boston struggled in round-robin play, it has an experienced team that has tasted recent postseason success.

"Guys who have been there, those stakes will always be in the ground," Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy said, according to Field Level Media (h/t ESPN). "We're generally healthy and got these guys some much-needed work [the past week], so those are the positives."

If the Bruins get past the Hurricanes in the first round, then they could be poised to get back to the Stanley Cup Final and potentially even win this year.