Stanley Cup simulations: No. 1 Capitals, Penguins, Blackhawks have best odds

More than 10,000 postseason simulations had the winner of Capitals-Penguins going on to win it all

By Cody Benjamin

Apr 10, 2017 at 5:43 pm ET • 1 min read

If more than 10,000 simulations by SportsLine’s Projection Model prove true, the winner of a potential second-round battle between the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL playoffs will all but crown this season’s Stanley Cup champion.

The Capitals and Chicago Blackhawks boast the best odds (4/1) to win the Cup entering the postseason, according to SportsLine, but it’s mostly the Eastern Conference that has prognosticators thinking about a 2016-17 title.

“If the Caps get by Toronto and the Pens take care of Columbus, we’ll get an epic showdown in the Eastern Conference semis,” SportsLine says. “The SportsLine Projection Model simulated the playoffs 10,000-plus times and expects the Caps-Pens winner to hoist the Cup. In our simulations, Washington is winning the Cup 24.6 percent of the time, followed by Pittsburgh at 23.3 percent.”

Chicago, meanwhile, is projected by SportsLine to capture another Stanley Cup championship 12.5 percent of the time, even though the Blackhawks have better odds (4/1) than the Pens (8/1) heading into Wednesday’s action.

Here are SportsLine’s complete Stanley Cup odds entering the first week of the playoffs:

Chicago Blackhawks: 4/1

Washington Capitals: 4/1

Pittsburgh Penguins: 8/1

Anaheim Ducks: 10/1

New York Rangers: 10/1

Columbus Blue Jackets: 10/1

Minnesota Wild: 10/1

Edmonton Oilers: 12/1

Montreal Canadiens: 14/1

San Jose Sharks: 14/1

Boston Bruins: 20/1