The Rangers are a massive favorite over the Capitals in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with the series kicking off on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.
The No. 1 seed Rangers are -410 to eliminate the No. 8 seed Capitals, who are +315 to pull off the upset at FanDuel Sportsbook.
The Blueshirts are the biggest favorite of the NHL’s eight first-round playoff matchups, beating out the Hurricanes, who are -350 to take down the Islanders.
Rangers vs. Capitals series odds
| Series spread | Series odds | Series games |
|---|---|---|
| Rangers -1.5 (-170) | Rangers (-410) | o5.5 (-132) |
| Capitals +1.5 (+138) | Capitals (+315) | u5.5 (+108) |
Oddsmakers are anticipating a relatively short series as well.
The Rangers are just +490 to sweep the Capitals and +280 to finish them off in five games.
The pair split their four contests during the regular season with each coming in December and January.
The Rangers are being pegged as one of the top Stanley Cup contenders as they search for their first title since 1994.
They are currently tied with the Dallas Stars with the third-best odds (+800, FanDuel) to win the Stanley Cup, trailing the Carolina Hurricanes (+650) and Florida Panthers (+700).
The Rangers also have the third-best odds to win the Eastern Conference (+340), once again trailing the Hurricanes (+300) and Panthers (+330).
Betting on the NHL?
This season’s Stanley Cup race is shaping up to be one of the most wide open in NHL history.
It’s the first time since at least 1985 that no team had title odds better than 6/1 heading into Round 1.
