When do the 2022 NHL Conference Finals start?

The Stanley Cup playoffs consist of four rounds (first round, second round, conference finals, Cup finals) with 16 teams. Each round series is a best-of-7. The top three teams in each of the four divisions (Metropolitan, Atlantic, Central and Pacific) and four wild cards (two per conference) qualify for the postseason. The winner of the Eastern Conference Final will face the winner of the Western Conference Final for the Stanley Cup starting in mid-June.

The Tampa Bay Lightning are the first team to advance to the Conference Finals after completing a four-game sweep of the Florida Panthers. The Lightning are the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions and will be playing in their sixth conference final in the past eight years. They will play the winner of the series before the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers. That series is currently tied at 2-2 with Game 5 on Thursday.

The teams remaining in the playoffs as of May 27 are the Lightning, Hurricanes, Rangers, Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers.

The Avalanche will face the Oilers in the Western Conference Final. That series is slated to begin on Tuesday, May 31 with Game 1 at 8 p.m. ET on TNT. The Conference Finals will not begin until all of the second round series are complete.

Here are the current Stanley Cup odds for the remaining eight teams from DraftKings Sportsbook:

Colorado Avalanche +135
Tampa Bay Lightning +260
Carolina Hurricanes +600
Edmonton Oilers +650
New York Rangers +1300