Final 2022 NHL Regular Season Betting Predictions

By Hank Blaine • October 6, 2022

Parity reigns in the National Hockey League, which is why teams like the Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, and Colorado Avalanche offer fair odds to win their respective divisions. The season starts on Friday, Oct. 7. So keep reading to find out which teams should be on your radar to win each of the four divisions before the first puck drops.

What to Look Out for During the 2022 NHL Regular Season

We're just a day away from the start of the NHL season ????@TheBigLeebowski gets you prepped with his betting power rankings and a best bet for all 32 teams ⬇️
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Eastern Conference // Atlantic Division

Toronto Maple Leafs

Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews lead a team that also includes the top pair of goalies in the league: Ilya Samsonov and Matt Murray. Toronto has more going for it than the Lightning, which is why they’re the pick over Tampa to win the Atlantic.

Tampa Bay Lightning

The core that led to back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals victories, Victor Hedman, Steve Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, etc., remains. So does goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy. If you don’t like the Leafs to win the Atlantic, consider putting a few bucks on the Lightning.

Boston Bruins

Boston’s window is probably closed. But it’s tough to find an underdog in the Atlantic. Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand can still play. Jeremy Swayman is an up and coming goalie. So if the old men can deliver, Bergeron is 37 and Marchand is 34, who knows?

Eastern Conference // Metropolitan Division

New York Rangers

Carolina is a +100 favorite over the Rangers, which doesn’t make sense. NYR is loaded. Artemi Panarin leads a squad that includes 50-goal scorer Chris Kreider, Vincent Trochek, Kaapo Kakko, and a bunch of other star players.

Goalie Igor Shesterkin won the Venezia Trophy last season. Not only that, but the Rangers won 110 games last season and lost in the Eastern Conference Finals to Tampa Bay. So if NYR improves at all, they will take the Metropolitan.

Carolina Hurricanes

For sure, Carolina can win the Metro division. But man-to-man, even with Max Pacioretty, Sebastian Aho, and the rest, New York’s roster looks better. Also, Carolina offers much lower odds than they should. Again, the Hurricanes can win, but at +200, the Canes are a play against.

New York Islanders

Matthew Barzal is a great player. But outside of Barzal, the Islanders’ roster doesn’t stack up to Carolina’s or the Rangers’. This is the NHL, though, where anything can happen. So if you believe the Islanders step it up, go for it because the +700 are fair odds.

Western Conference // Central Division

Colorado Avalanche

It’s going to be tough to beat the defending Stanley Cup champs in the often deep Central Division. Colorado is loaded again. Not only that, but the Avalanche easily won the Central last season. Unless you believe the Avs suffer a catastrophic injury to one of their star players, they’re close to a must play at the odds.

St. Louis Blues

The Blues made the playoffs last season. So they should be taken seriously, but it’s almost impossible to pick St. Louis over Colorado to win the Central. The Blues aren’t deep enough and they don’t have good enough players to keep Nathan MacKinnon and his mates from winning the division. Still, if you want to play the second pick, put money behind the Blues. They should be closest to the Avalanche on the division standings.

Dallas Stars

Joe Pavelski is 38 and goalie Braden Holtby is 33, which means the Stars are a veteran squad. Dallas shouldn’t have much shot versus Colorado, St. Louis, or even Minnesota in the race to the division title.

We promised a dog pick for each division, though. So the Dallas Stars are the underdog pick to win the Central.

Western Conference // Pacific Division

Los Angeles Kings

Los Angeles surprised everyone last season when making the NHL Playoffs. This season, the Kings can win the Pacific. 35-year-old Anze Kopitar has some hockey left in his skates. As does 36-year-old goalie Jonathan Quick.

In addition, the Kings are loaded with young players. So if the vets remain solid, the young guys could pick it up enough to help the Kings beat Edmonton for the division title.

Edmonton Oilers

Although Edmonton is the safe pick, the odds aren’t that bad on a team that will be in the hunt for their division starting the first match. Like in every season, the Oilers’ chances of winning the Pacific depends on how well Connor McDavid and Leo Draisatl play.

Actually, we know both will play great. So the key is whether or not Connor and Leo stay healthy. If they do, the Kings, the Flames, etc. will find it difficult to beat the Oilers for the division.

Vancouver Canucks

The Canucks have talent. Quinn Hughes, Brock Boeser, and J.T. Miller can hang with the rest of the players in the Pacific. But the Canucks don’t have a one-two punch like McDavid and Draisatl or the Kings’ youth. However, the Pacific should be wide-open. So if you want to play a dog with a shot, consider backing Vancouver.

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*All odds stated are subject to change without prior notice.