NHL Playoffs: How Many Teams Have Come Back From 3-1

Teams can’t take a moment off in the NHL playoffs, especially with a 3-1 series lead. 

While it happens considerably more than it used to, only 32 teams have overcome a 3-1 deficit in the history of the NHL playoffs. 

Unsurprisingly, the Stanley Cup odds for the trailing team at the BetMGM online sportsbook lengthen substantially.  

Let’s take a detailed look at the odds of pulling off a comeback and identify which teams have done so and when it most often occurs.

NHL Playoffs: Odds of Coming Back From 3-1 Deficit

The last 3-1 comeback was in the first round of the 2023 playoffs, when the Florida Panthers stormed back, earning the right to be among the seven first-round comebacks in NHL playoff history. 

The team trailing 3-1 has a 9% success rate, which equates to hockey odds of +1000. No teams accomplished the feat between 1943 and 1974, while 17 teams have done so since the turn of the millennium.

Only four NHL playoff teams have come back from 3-0 down.

How Many Teams Have Come Back From 3-1 in the First Round? 

Of the 32 comebacks, 23 occurred in the first round of the playoffs (72%). 

The last four were in the first round, and there hasn’t been a 3-1 comeback in the second round or later since 2015. 

Only one of 17 3-1 comebacks since the turn of the millennium occurred after the second round, with the New Jersey Devils defeating the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2000 Eastern Conference final.

How Many Teams Have Come Back From 3-1 in the Stanley Cup Final? 

The Toronto Maple Leafs are the only team to come back from a 3-1 series deficit in the Stanley Cup Final and win. They won four straight in the 1942 final against the Detroit Red Wings. 

Playoffs With Most 3-1 Comebacks 

The 2003 and 1992 playoffs had the most 3-1 series comebacks (three).