Golden Knights now 6-1 co-favorites to win Stanley Cup

The NHL is back on the betting board at the Westgate sportsbook.

After the plan for an expanded 24-team postseason was approved Friday by the NHL Players’ Association executive board, the Westgate posted prices on eight potential play-in series and adjusted its Stanley Cup futures odds.

The Golden Knights, one of the top four teams from each conference to receive a bye into the quarterfinals, are the 6-1 co-favorites — with the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning — to win the 2020 Stanley Cup.

Vegas (39-24-8), the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, was the 5-1 Stanley Cup favorite when the NHL suspended its season March 12 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“We bumped the Knights up from 5-1 to 6-1 for the Cup,” Westgate vice president of risk Jeff Sherman said. “We just felt that no one should be 5-1 or shorter based on that format.”

Caesars Entertainment also lists the Knights, Bruins and Lightning as 6-1 co-favorites to win the Cup.

The other teams receiving byes are the Colorado Avalanche (8-1), St. Louis Blues (10-1), Washington Capitals (10-1), Philadelphia Flyers (12-1) and Dallas Stars (14-1).

Sherman said the Westgate made its play-in prices based on best-of-five series played at neutral sites that have yet to be determined.

If the NHL playoff format mirrors an NCAA-style bracket without reseeding, the Knights would face the winner of the Coyotes-Predators play-in series. Nashville is a -125 favorite over Arizona (+105).

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.