A betting look at Round 2 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs

We're down to eight teams in the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs after a fantastic Round 1. Hopefully a similar level of competitiveness is in store with a trip to the Conference Finals on the line.

Let's familiarize ourselves with all four series, the betting odds for each and how to approach them with your wagers.

Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Florida Panthers

Series start: Tuesday, 7 p.m. EST

Betting odds to win series: Tampa Bay +130 | Florida -150

Regular season meetings: Series tied 2-2

Both teams notched a pair of wins against the other in the regular season, with the last two games being particularly high-scoring affairs with 12 total goals scored in each contest.

Florida had a brief scare against Washington in Round 1 before righting the ship, and its regular season scoring totals did not carry over against the Capitals.

Meanwhile, Tampa Bay got through a tough seven-game series against a very good Maple Leafs team, winning Games 6 and 7 to advance. The Lightning and goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy have now gone 17-0 following a postseason loss since 2020, one of the most impressive streaks alive in sports.

Given the Lightning's postseason success as a two-time defending champion, we like them to advance here at +130.

St. Louis Blues vs. Colorado Avalanche

Series start: Tuesday, 9:30 p.m. EST

Betting odds to win series: St. Louis +290 | Colorado -380

Regular season meetings: Colorado won 2-1

It's hard to ignore what Colorado just did in the first round, destroying Nashville en route to a clean sweep to begin their 2022 postseason. The Avalanche displayed both explosive offense and strong goaltending, controlling the pace in all four games.

The Blues also had a strong Round 1, taking care of Minnesota in six games and pouring on goals themselves.

This does seem like it should be a good series, but ultimately the Avalanche are the more talented team and our pick to reach the Stanley Cup.

For betting purposes, our preferred approach is to look at parlaying the Avalanche to win the series with a few other wagers. On DraftKings, you can bet on how many games a team will win in the series, so pursuing a few low-odds additions there, i.e. Tampa to win two games at -370, may help you find a more manageable bet.

New York Rangers vs. Carolina Hurricanes

Series start: Wednesday, 7 p.m. EST

Betting odds to win series: New York +160 | Carolina -190

Regular season meetings: Carolina won 3-1

We have two teams that won in Game 7s on our hands in this playoff matchup, and it feels like another series destined for seven games.

The Rangers climbed out of a 3-1 hole to win three straight and take down Pittsburgh, an extremely impressive feat that included a Game 7 overtime winner from Artemi Panarin. Star goalie Igor Shesterkin had a pretty rough stretch in the middle of the series but was able to right the ship and help New York advance.

Carolina's series against Boston saw the home team win each and every game. The Hurricanes goaltending has been solid and their offense diverse, and even in the regular season, their success did seem to skew towards their home ice.

For betting here, we like looking the home team's way to begin the series. We'll be betting Carolina to take Game 1 and monitoring who is skating on home ice for our nightly bets.

If Shesterkin can play up to his potential, there does seem to be some value on the Rangers winning this series at +160.

Edmonton Oilers vs. Calgary Flames

Series start: Wednesday, 10:30 p.m. EST

Betting odds to win series: Edmonton +160 | Calgary -190

Regular season meetings: Series tied 2-2

The final series of the second round is the famed Battle of Alberta rivalry, which should make for an intense series that we could see going seven games.

Both the Oilers and Flames took seven games to advance out of Round 1, with Calgary's issues finishing off Dallas coming as a bigger surprise. Yes, Stars goalie Jake Oettinger had a fantastic series, but that felt like an opponent the Flames should have handled easily, which has given us some pause on their prospects.

Edmonton found themselves in a nightly shootout with Los Angeles, but if Mike Smith can carry over his Game 7 shutout energy, perhaps it's the Oilers that advance here. The home team won every game in this regular season series, worth noting as we plan our nightly bets.

Expect a potentially higher-scoring series, as both teams piled on plenty of shots on goal in the first round. Edmonton's value at +160 is intriguing, but given our future prop on the Flames heading into the postseason, our hope is that ticket remains alive.

This series is a terrific candidate for seven games, and would be another good series to look at DraftKings for series spread bets. You can bet the Oilers to win two or more games at -280, a good parlay addition.

Nightly coverage of the Stanley Cup playoffs will continue as we head into the next round. Let's keep the good times rolling in NHL betting while we can!