Stanley Cup Finals 2022 Odds: How Many Games Will Tampa Bay Lightning, Colorado Avalanche Play?

The Colorado Avalanche are favored over the Tampa Bay Lightning in a highly anticipated 2022 Stanley Cup Finals matchup. That doesn’t mean it will be an easy series for the Avalanche, who are trying to take down the back-to-back NHL champions.

The Avalanche have -190 odds at BetMGM to win the 2022 Stanley Cup. The Lightning have +155 odds, making Tampa Bay underdogs in an attempt to complete a three-peat. No matter which team prevails, the series is expected to be a lengthy and competitive one.

BetMGM has set the odds of the series going seven games at +200, making it the most likely outcome. A six-game Stanley Cup Finals has +225 odds, followed by +250 odds for a five-game series. It would be surprising if either team pulls off a sweep, which has been given +550 odds before Game 1.

It’s hard to imagine that the Avalanche could be eliminated quickly after their impressive run through the Western Conference. Colorado swept its first-round series and the Western Conference Finals. The St. Louis Blues pushed the Avalanche to six games in the second round, though Colorado was an overtime win from wrapping up that series in Game 5.

The defending champs have shown series after series that they won’t go down without a fight. Tampa Bay won consecutive elimination games in the first round to outlast the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Lightning swept the No.1 seed Florida Panthers in the second round, limiting the NHL’s top offense to three goals. In the Eastern Conference Finals, Tampa Bay overcame a 2-0 series deficit by winning four straight games against the New York Rangers.

The Avalanche have +375 odds to win the Stanley Cup Finals in six games, which is the most likely outcome, according to oddsmakers. Colorado has +400 odds to win the championship in five or seven games.

The Lightning have +550 odds to win in six games and +650 odds to win Game 7 on the road.

Colorado has home-ice advantage. Game 6 would be played in Tampa Bay. The Avalanche haven’t lost a road game in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar is favored to win the Conn Smythe Trophy. With a team-high 22 points through 14 games, Makar has +175 odds to be named the most valuable player of the postseason. Nathan MacKinnon leads Colorado with 11 postseason games and isn’t far behind with +200 Conn Smythe odds.

Two Lightning players are tied with +400 odds to win the Conn Smythe Trophy. Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy and Nikita Kucherov are Tampa Bay’s top contenders for the award.

Vasilevskiy won the 2021 Conn Smythe Trophy and has a .928 save percentage this postseason. Kucherov leads Tampa Bay with 23 points, the most for any player on the ice in the Stanley Cup Finals.

Steven Stamkos is a distant fifth with +1400 Conn Smythe odds.