Vegas Golden Knights Now Co-Favorites to Win Stanley Cup

After being long shots for the title prior to the season, the Vegas Golden Knights are now among the favorites for the Stanley Cup.

After a surprising sweep of the Los Angeles Kings in the first round of the NHL playoffs, the Vegas Golden Knights are now co-favorites to win the Stanley Cup, according to the Westgate Sportsbook.

On Tuesday, the Golden Knights defeated Los Angeles 1-0 to advance to the second round. Few people may have seen this level of success coming. At the beginning of the season, Vegas had just 200-1 odds to win the Stanley Cup and team management did not expect to contend. 

"We don't have high expectations for this year," owner Bill Foley told ESPN in August. "We're going to be competitive. If we're going to lose a game, we'd like to lose by a goal or two, not lose by five or six. We don't want to be a walkover team. We want to be competitive. We want to be entertaining on the ice. We want to score some goals."

The NHL's newest expansion team is a 4-1 favorite to win the league title and tied with the Nashville Predators for best in the NHL. 

The Golden Knights have been one of the most surprising stories in sports, becoming the first NHL team to make the postseason and sweep their first opponent in their first season.

Across all U.S. major sports, Vegas is the first team to post a winning record in their inaugural season since 1960. They will likely face the San Jose Sharks, who lead the Anaheim Ducks 3-0, in the next round.