Stanley Cup Playoffs · Round 1 · Sunday April 19, 2026 · Odds via Covers.com
Colorado was an absolute buzzsaw this season at 55-16-11 — best in the West, dominant at home, and they drew the LA Kings as a Wild Card opponent. The Kings snuck in at 35-27-20 and now have to walk into Ball Arena for a 3 PM Sunday matinee against a team that looked like a Cup contender all year. This one has all the makings of a statement game for the Avs.
- Colorado went 26-9-6 at home this season — opponents beware of Ball Arena
- LA posted a brutal 30-52-0 ATS record, one of the worst cover sheets in the league
- Avs went 6-3-1 in their last 10 while Kings finished just 5-5-0 in L10 games
| Pick | Reasoning | Conf. |
|---|---|---|
| Colorado Avalanche -263 | A 55-win team at home against a Wild Card squad that couldn’t cover all season is the definition of a chalk play worth trusting in Game 1. | ★★☆ |
| Over 6.0 | Colorado’s high-octane offense at home combined with LA needing to push the pace as the underdog sets up a game that should see goals early and often. | ★★☆ |
| Nathan MacKinnon anytime goal scorer | MacKinnon elevates in playoff openers on home ice and the Kings allowed enough offense this season to give him a clean look or two. | ★★☆ |
Montreal rolls into Tampa as the A3 seed but don’t let that fool you — the Habs have been the hottest team in the East lately, going 7-3 in their last 10 while Tampa limped to a 5-5 finish down the stretch. The Lightning have the better record at 50-26-6 but those -189 odds feel inflated when you look at how these teams are actually playing right now. This one is a legit toss-up masquerading as a home favorite situation.
- Montreal went 24-9-8 on the road, one of the best away records in the Atlantic
- Habs covered at a 46-36-0 clip, outperforming nearly every East team ATS all season
- Tampa faded to 5-5 in L10, raising real questions about their playoff readiness and momentum
| Pick | Reasoning | Conf. |
|---|---|---|
| Montreal Canadiens +165 | Montreal’s red-hot form, elite road record, and strong ATS history make +165 a steal against a fading Lightning squad. | ★★★ |
| Under 6.0 | Playoff hockey tightens up fast and two defensively solid teams in a Game 1 feeling-out spot screams low-scoring affair. | ★★☆ |
| Cole Caufield anytime goal scorer | Caufield has been Montreal’s engine all season and playoff spotlights tend to bring out his best finishing instincts. | ★★☆ |
Buffalo earned the A1 seed with a dominant 50-23-9 campaign and owns the Sabres’ best home record in years at 26-10-5 — they are not here to mess around. Boston snuck in as the WC1 and while their 55-27-0 ATS mark is absurd, the road hasn’t been kind at 16-16-9. Game 1 in Buffalo is loud, hostile, and very much the Sabres’ moment.
- Buffalo’s 26-10-5 home record is the best in the Atlantic — fortress mentality
- Boston went 55-27-0 ATS all season — best ATS mark in the entire NHL
- Bruins road record a pedestrian 16-16-9, a real concern vs top seeds
| Pick | Reasoning | Conf. |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Sabres -156 | Home-ice advantage, superior regular season record, and a Sabres squad that has been dominant in Buffalo all year make them the right side in Game 1. | ★★★ |
| Under 6.0 | Playoff hockey tightens up in Game 1s — both goaltenders will be locked in and neither team will want to give up a sloppy opener. | ★★☆ |
| Tage Thompson anytime goal scorer | Thompson is Buffalo’s engine and with the crowd behind him in a massive home Game 1, he’s going to want to make a statement early. | ★★☆ |
Vegas closes out the regular season absolutely scorching — 7-0-3 in their last 10 — and now get to host a Utah squad that’s never sniffed a Game 1 spotlight like this. The Mammoth snuck in as WC1 with a 43-33-6 record and actually played decent hockey lately (6-4 L10), but walking into T-Mobile for a playoff opener against the hottest team in the West is a different animal entirely. This series starts Sunday night at 10 PM ET and the vibes in Vegas are going to be absolutely unreal.
- Vegas went 7-0-3 down the stretch — best form of any playoff team entering April
- Both teams went OVER in 7 of their last 10 games — serious value at the 6.0 total
- Utah’s brutal 36-46 ATS record all season makes them a dangerous team to back on the spread
| Pick | Reasoning | Conf. |
|---|---|---|
| Vegas Golden Knights -157 | You don’t fade the hottest team in hockey in a home Game 1 — Vegas has been an absolute buzzsaw and T-Mobile Arena in the playoffs is basically a fortress. | ★★★ |
| Over 6.0 | Both teams cashed the over 7 of their last 10 and Utah doesn’t have the defensive structure to slow down a Vegas offense playing its best hockey of the year. | ★★★ |
| Mark Stone anytime goal scorer | Stone elevates in the playoffs and with Vegas flying high offensively, he’s in prime position to set the tone with a goal in front of a raucous home crowd. | ★★☆ |
