NHL Playoffs 2021: Analyzing Stanley Cup Odds for Every Remaining Team

The Stanley Cup playoffs field is down to four. One team from this quartet will soon be celebrating a championship to end the 2020-21 season.

None of the four No. 1 seeds are still in the playoffs. The highest-seeded team remaining was the last to clinch its spot in the next round, as the No. 2-seeded Vegas Golden Knights advanced with a 6-3 win over the No. 1-seeded Colorado Avalanche in a Game 6 matchup Thursday night.

The Tampa Bay Lightning (No. 3 seed), New York Islanders (No. 4) and Montreal Canadiens (No. 4) all pulled off upsets to get to this point.

Here's a closer look at the four remaining teams, along with the odds of each to win the Stanley Cup, per DraftKings Sportsbook.

Vegas Golden Knights (+115)

John Locher/Associated Press

The Golden Knights have been expected to be a Stanley Cup contender for most of the season, and nothing has changed. They had 82 regular-season points (tied for the most in the NHL), and they have taken down the other top two teams in the West Division (the Colorado Avalanche and Minnesota Wild) to get to the final four.

But Vegas still overcame adversity to get here. It blew a 3-1 lead in its first-round series against Minnesota, but it bounced back with a 6-2 win in Game 7 at home to advance. It fell behind 2-0 to Colorado in the second round before answering with four straight victories to move on.

Even though the Golden Knights are in only their fourth season, this is an experienced team. They have been one of the final four teams in the postseason three times, and their core that will make them difficult to beat moving forward.

With a strong offense led by captain Mark Stone, a solid defense that added Alex Pietrangelo last offseason and a veteran goaltender in Marc-Andre Fleury, Vegas may be on its way to capturing the first Stanley Cup in its franchise's brief history.

Tampa Bay Lightning (+175)

Gerry Broome/Associated Press

The champions are making a strong push to repeat. And while the Lightning were the No. 3 seed in the Central Division, it's no surprise that they have reached this point and look like having the best chance to take down the Golden Knights if both teams advance to the Stanley Cup Final.

Tampa Bay's two leading scorers this postseason have been forwards Nikita Kucherov (five goals and 13 assists) and Steven Stamkos (five goals and eight assists). Kucherov missed the entire regular season because of a hip injury, while Stamkos was limited to 38 games by a lower-body injury, so both have provided an immediate boost to the Lightning's offense.

Even though Tampa Bay was the lower seed for each of its first two playoff series, it jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a pair of road wins in each. It beat the No. 2-seeded Florida Panthers in six games in the first round and took down the No. 1-seeded Carolina Hurricanes in five games.

The last team to win back-to-back Stanley Cups was the Pittsburgh Penguins four years ago. The Lightning could soon be celebrating a repeat of their own.

New York Islanders (+650)

Frank Franklin II/Associated Press

Although the New York Islanders were the No. 4 seed out of the East Division, it's not a total surprise that they have made it this far. They had 71 points during the regular season, which was only six fewer than the No. 1-seeded Pittsburgh Penguins.

In each of the first two rounds of the playoffs, New York fell behind 2-1. Both times, it then reeled off three straight victories to end the series, taking down the Penguins and No. 3-seeded Boston Bruins.

Isles goaltender Semyon Varlamov struggled during his brief time in the net during the first round, allowing seven total goals in the Games 2 and 3 losses to the Pens. But after briefly starting rookie Ilya Sorokin, New York went back to Varlamov for Game 2 of the second round, and it's won four of the past five games with him starting. He's also allowed two or fewer goals in two of the past three games.

The Islanders won four straight Stanley Cups from 1980-83, but they haven't won it since. It's going to take another upset over the Lightning for them to have a chance to play for another. However, New York has proved its resiliency this postseason, and with Barry Trotz in charge, it wouldn't be a total surprise to see them in this season's Stanley Cup Final.

Montreal Canadiens (+900)

Peter Power/Associated Press

With only 59 regular-season points (the fewest of any team to reach the postseason), few people expected the Canadiens to make a deep playoff run. That didn't change after they fell behind 3-1 to the No. 1-seeded Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round.

Since being on the brink of elimination, however, Montreal hasn't lost a game. It came back against Toronto with three straight wins and then swept the No. 3-seeded Winnipeg Jets in the second round. The Habs have won three overtime contests during their seven-game winning streak and have allowed only 12 goals during this run.

Goaltender Carey Price has been a big reason for the Canadiens' success this postseason. He's played all 11 games and posted a 1.97 goals-against average and .935 save percentage. If he continues to play this well, Montreal could keep pulling off upsets.

Despite their goalie's heroics, the Canadiens remain an underdog this postseason because every team they will face has a significantly better regular-season record. What's more, there hasn't been a team from Canada win the Stanley Cup since Montreal in 1993. However, that could soon change if the Price-powered Habs keep pulling out surprise victories.

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