2024 Stanley Cup odds: Maple Leafs, Avalanche favored to win it all

With the NHL draft behind us and free agency well underway, we've passed the eye of the offseason storm.

Although there are still some familiar names on the market - Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews come to mind - most of the notable free agents have found new homes.

Now that a ton of roster shaping has taken place, it's time to start looking ahead to the 2023-24 campaign.

Which teams are getting the most respect in the market? Which teams are heading for a year of pain? Let's take a closer look.

The Avalanche once again find themselves favored to win the Stanley Cup, although the odds are longer than they were at open last year (+425). They've enjoyed a strong offseason to date, replacing J.T. Compher with a cheaper alternative in Ryan Johansen. Colorado pulled off a pair of savvy trades, essentially swapping Alex Newhook for Ross Colton and a first-round pick. The Avs made some noise in free agency as well, adding speed and depth scoring in Miles Wood while also rolling the dice on Jonathan Drouin - Nathan MacKinnon's junior hockey linemate - in hopes of adding cheap production. They look very dangerous once again.

A revamped Maple Leafs squad finds itself on level pegging with the shortest odds. While the Maple Leafs seem set on keeping the Core Four together - at least if they can find a way to re-sign William Nylander - new general manager Brad Treliving sure changed the surrounding mix.

He walked away from Ryan O'Reilly, Michael Bunting, and Alex Kerfoot, replacing them with gritty alternatives in Tyler Bertuzzi, Max Domi, and Ryan Reaves. He also let Justin Holl leave in free agency and signed puck-moving defenseman John Klingberg. Are the Maple Leafs better than a year ago? Worse? It's hard to tell - but they sure are different.

The Edmonton Oilers find themselves third in the pecking order. They moved on from inconsistent depth forwards Kailer Yamamoto and Klim Kostin, intelligently reallocating the resources to snag Connor Brown. He missed most of last season due to injury but averaged 50 points per 82 games in the previous two seasons. Brown adds speed, scoring, and versatility to the Oilers' already strong forward core.

Next up are a pair of Metropolitan Division teams: the Devils and Hurricanes. The former, in particular, are universally loved right now - and rightfully so. The Devils finished third in the league this past season and have retained all of their best young players. A full year with Timo Meier, newcomer Tyler Toffoli, and the promotion of top prospects Luke Hughes and (eventually) Simon Nemec can only benefit the club. The only question mark lies in goal.

The Bruins and Golden Knights find themselves in the next price tier, just outside the top five.

The Bruins will look a lot different in October. They let go of Bertuzzi, Taylor Hall, and Dmitry Orlov due to cap constraints. They're also still awaiting retirement decisions from Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. The Bruins made some affordable depth adds - most notably James van Riemsdyk and Morgan Geekie - but they look worse on paper.

Meanwhile, the Golden Knights seem poised for a strong defense of the Stanley Cup. They had to deal Reilly Smith to re-sign Ivan Barbashev, but the majority of the team remains intact.

Moving further down the list, the Flames and Senators are Canada's next-best - albeit distant - hopes for the Stanley Cup. Unfortunately, neither team finds itself in a great spot.

The Flames already moved on from Toffoli, and there are rumors Elias Lindholm, Mikael Backlund, and Noah Hanifin are unlikely to stay and perhaps looking to depart sooner rather than later. How new GM Craig Conroy navigates that largely determines how competitive the Flames will be next season.

Meanwhile, the future of Alex DeBrincat looms large over the Senators. Will he have a change of heart and re-sign with Ottawa? What kind of return could he garner? How will trading DeBrincat help in the here and now? Suffice it to say, Pierre Dorion has his hands full.

It'll be interesting to see how the next wave of activity impacts the market. We'll take a closer look before the puck drops in October.

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.