Hockey is back! We are in the early stages of the 2025-26 NHL season. It should be a good one! And remember, this year there is no all-star game – instead we are treated to best-on-best at the 2026 Winter Olympics in February.
A lot can and will happen during the 1,312-game NHL regular season. There will be surprises and disappointments and records broken.
Hope and optimism spring eternal this time of year for NHL fans. And some pertinent questions stand out. Let’s get into them!
Is this the year Connor McDavid leads his Edmonton Oilers to a Stanley Cup win?
The best player on the planet certainly left no doubt where his focus lies after inking a bargain team-friendly two year/$25 million dollar contract, ostensibly so the team would have extra money to spend on other players to help McDavid out.
Mitch Marner escaped the chaos of playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs to sign with the Vegas Golden Knights. Is Marner the missing piece for a Vegas team that continues to contend every year?
And in a Conference with multiple other Stanley Cup contenders (Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, St. Louis Blues among them), it will be fun to watch them compete against each other. This also makes for great betting opportunities.
Let’s take a look at the Western Conference, division by division.
CENTRAL DIVISION ODDS
- Dallas Stars - 15/8
- Colorado Avalanche - 15/8
- Winnipeg Jets - 11/2
- Minnesota Wild - 8/1
- Utah Mammoth - 11/1
- St. Louis Blues - 11/1
- Nashville Predators - 28/1
- Chicago Blackhawks - 150/1
The Central Division is very interesting considering the gap between the top and bottom teams.
The Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars are the class of the division while a strong case can be made for each of the Winnipeg Jets, Minnesota Wild, St. Louis Blues and Utah Mammoth. The Nashville Predators and Chicago Blackhawks should both be expected to struggle.
Both the Avalanche and Stars are deep teams with lots of talent at forward and defense. The Colorado talent is objectively better, but the Avalanche goaltending is weaker. Each are strong bets to win the Stanley Cup.
The second tier in this division is made up of the Jets, Wild, Blues and Mammoth. Each of these four teams have high upside and could make considerable noise in the Western Conference.
Rounding out the division are the Predators and Blackhawks. The only smart bet for these teams is to miss the playoffs – they are simply overmatched with their current rosters.
PACIFIC DIVISION ODDS
- Vegas Golden Knights - 6/4
- Edmonton Oilers - 13/8
- Los Angeles Kings - 4/1
- Vancouver Canucks - 12/1
- Anaheim Ducks - 25/1
- Calgary Flames - 28/1
- Seattle Kraken - 50/1
- San Jose Sharks - 150/1
Connor McDavid has a new contract and the Edmonton Oilers are running it back. McDavid is under contract for just three more years, so Edmonton management must seize the moment and surround McDavid with enough complimentary talent to finally win the Stanley Cup. To do so, an upgrade in goal is likely necessary.
In Vegas, expectations are high with the off-season signing of superstar LW Mitch Marner, formerly of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Marner and Jack Eichel will form a dynamic offensive duo up front and the Golden Knights should again be considered a top contender for the Stanley Cup.
The Los Angeles Kings should be expected to make the playoffs. They have scoring up front and play a tenacious, hard game. Concern lies with the Kings defensive depth, and whether goalie Darcy Kuemper can replicate his excellent season of a year ago.
The Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks are both interesting teams. Vancouver underachieved last season. Will the trade of J.T. Miller to the New York Rangers solve the locker room strife that derailed the Canucks last year? In Calgary, the opposite is true. The Flames overachieved and narrowly missed the playoffs. Was it a mirage?
The other three teams in the division – the Seattle Kraken, Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks all are rebuilding.
There is much work left to do in both Anaheim and San Jose, however there is an outside chance Seattle can surprise – a Seattle to make the playoffs bet would pay lucrative odds.
*Odds subject to change – prices accurate at the time of writing*
