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The Colorado Avalanche will look to do something that hasn't been done in a decade this postseason -- win the Stanley Cup after winning the Presidents' Trophy. No team has won both in the same year since the 2012-13 Chicago Blackhawks, but this Avalanche team certainly seems up to the task. However, they'll have to get through the Los Angeles Kings in the first round to keep those hopes alive. 

The Avs recorded 121 points this year, losing in regulation just 16 times in a dominant display. Nathan MacKinnon led the NHL in goals with 53, while Cale Makar added 79 points in another stellar season from the star defenseman. Colorado has a veteran roster that won a Cup just a few seasons ago, and the team has much better goaltending this year than the last few campaigns with Scott Wedgewood having led the league in goals allowed per game at just 2.02. 

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The Kings, on the other hand, had 90 points this season -- the fewest among the 16 teams to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year. If they're going to pull off a big upset in the first round, it will be on the back of a strong defensive effort as L.A. allowed the seventh-fewest goals in the league and scored the fourth-fewest. The Kings face an Avalanche team that finished first in both goals scored and goals allowed. 

The Kings failed to register a point in three meetings against the Avs this season, getting outscored 13-5 without a win or even an overtime appearance. 

There's a big difference on the bench for each team as well, as Colorado's Jared Bednar is one of the longest-tenured coaches in the NHL while the Kings have an interim leader in D.J. James, who took over for Jim Hiller and led the team to an 11-6-6 finish to secure the final playoff spot in the West. 

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The Avs are the heavy favorites at different betting sites to win the Stanley Cup this year, and they're a heavy favorite in this series against the Kings. NHL betting odds make the Avalanche favorites with futures betting odds in the -450 to -600 range. On the other hand, the Kings are sizable underdogs in the +340 to +450 range. Learn how to read betting odds here.

WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST-ROUND SERIES

TEAM

DRAFTKINGS

FANDUEL

CAESARS

BETMGM

Colorado Avalanche

-450

-530

-600

-450

Los Angeles Kings

+340

+390

+450

+350

Pick: Avalanche to advance

Obviously there's far more profit potential in backing the underdog Kings here, but the Avs are massive favorites for a reason. They finished first in the league in both goals scored and allowed and feature a ton of offensive and defensive firepower behind MacKinnon and Makar. Additionally, Wedgewood enters the postseason with all sorts of confidence after pacing the NHL in goals allowed per game, giving Colorado a big boost in net that the team had been lacking at times over the last few postseasons. 

Yes, the Presidents' Trophy curse is a thing, with no team having won that and the Cup since 2012-13, but only the 2022-23 Boston Bruins lost in the first round over that time frame. History tells us if Colorado is going to stumble after winning the Presidents' Trophy, it will be in the second round. 

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The Kings can make things interesting if the defense stifles the league's top offense. L.A. was a top-10 team in terms of total goals allowed, and Darcy Kuemper is a veteran in net with a few years of postseason experience. This includes starting 16 games for the Avs during their 2021-22 championship run. Perhaps Kuemper stifles his old team like we saw Philipp Grubauer do for Seattle against Colorado in 2022-23, but the big issue for the Kings is offensively. 

Throwing out that they're facing a defense led by Makar and an elite goaltender in Wedgewood, the Kings scored the fourth-fewest goals in the league and had just one player -- Adrian Kempe -- record over 50 points with a team-leading 73. There simply doesn't appear to be enough offensive firepower there for the Kings to truly make things interesting against a team of Colorado's caliber.  

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