Last month, the Florida Panthers hoisted the Stanley Cup for the second consecutive season after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in six games. It marked the second straight campaign in which the Panthers were able to come out on top against the Oilers.
Shortly after the Panthers won it all, the NHL offseason was in full swing with the 2025 draft and free agency taking place. The majority of the league’s unrestricted free agents have already signed with new teams, which means that the 2025-26 season is coming into a clearer view.
With a large chunk of free agency wrapped up, let’s dive into which teams stand a good chance of making a run at the 2026 Stanley Cup from a betting perspective.
Odds via FanDuel
Florida Panthers (+700)
It’s not a surprise that the Panthers are projected as the odds-on favorite to win the Stanley Cup next season. After all, general manager Bill Zito was able to re-sign Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand, and Aaron Ekblad, who were all slated to be unrestricted free agents this summer. It’s just about about the same group aside from Jeff Petry replacing Nate Schmidt on defense after Schmidt signed with the Utah Mammoth in free agency. Florida’s brand of hockey continuously gave teams fits throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs; they simply outworked the majority of teams that they faced. Barring any sort of major injury, it’s hard to imagine a world in which the Panthers don’t make another deep run at the Stanley Cup in 2025-26.
Listen, I know what you’re thinking. We’ve heard this song and dance when it comes to the Hurricanes in previous years. This is a group that has been viewed as a Stanley Cup favorite on several occasions, but has never been able to get past the Eastern Conference Final. After the Jake Guentzel and Mikko Rantanen experiments failed, the Hurricanes swung for the fences again this offseason by signing former Winnipeg Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers to a six-year contract. Ehlers brings speed to Carolina’s lineup, while also adding a ton of goal-scoring prowess to the team’s top six. That speed could loom large when the Hurricanes inevitably must take down the Panthers if they want to make a run at Lord Stanley’s Cup.
It’s a tale as old as time: the Golden Knights have acquired an elite player as they pursue another Stanley Cup. The Vegas front office has thrown caution to the wind in the past by landing players like Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, and Noah Hanifin in recent years. Prior to free agency getting underway, the Golden Knights pulled off a sign-and-trade to acquire forward Mitch Marner from the Toronto Maple Leafs and signed him to a eight-year deal. Marner’s postseason track record has been called into question recently, but he instantly gives the Golden Knights another 100-point playmaker. In addition to Marner, the team also picked up some depth up the middle in the form of Colton Sissons and a depth defenseman in Jeremy Lauzon. As teams are currently constructed, the Golden Knights offer a large amount of value as a potential Stanley Cup winner with Marner now in the fold. In fact, they may be the second-best team behind the Panthers heading into next season.
Edmonton Oilers (+850)
For the second consecutive campaign, the Oilers were bested by the Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final. At this point, the Oilers have to be wondering what they have to do in order to take down the Panthers. This is going to be quite a different group than the one Edmonton has trotted out in the past two seasons. Veteran forward Corey Perry left town to sign with the Los Angeles Kings, while Victor Arvidsson was traded to the Boston Bruins. Edmonton did pick up veteran winger Andrew Mangiapane in free agency, who should offer some depth scoring on the second line. The biggest issue for the Oilers remains their goaltending, and it appears that they could be running it back with the tandem of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard. If the Oilers don’t make any headway this coming season, it could be Connor McDavid’s final year with the franchise since he’s set to be a free agent next summer.
When the Stars landed Mikko Rantanen at the trade deadline, it was expected that the Stars could contend for a Stanley Cup this past season. However, the Stars fell short, ousted in the Western Conference Final for the third straight season. It’s the same cast coming back to Dallas aside from deadline acquisition Mikael Granlund, who could be a fairly-sized loss. Still, this is a team that has a ton of scoring depth within its top three lines. A full season of Rantanen with his new teammates could do wonders, while new leadership also could be a blessing in disguise with coach Gulutzan behind the bench. The West could be a four-team race between the Golden Knights, Oilers, Colorado Avalanche, and Stars next season. Still, the Stars may need to make some tweaks later in the campaign in order to be viewed as a favorite in the West.
Colorado Avalanche (+900)
The Avalanche certainly can’t ever be counted out when it comes to making a Stanley Cup run. Colorado added the likes of defenseman Brent Burns and was able to re-sign forward Brock Nelson this summer, but it’s mostly the same group coming back. It’s worth noting that captain Gabriel Landeskog won’t be quite as rusty next season and will have a full offseason under his belt. The same holds true with Martin Necas, who was acquired from the Hurricanes in the Mikko Rantanen deal last season. Personally, it’s hard to imagine the Avalanche leapfrogging the Golden Knights, Oilers, and Stars in the West’s pecking order from a futures perspective as they’re currently built.
The Lightning were a team that many (including myself) believed had a chance to make another Stanley Cup run as a result of the Panthers potentially being without Matthew Tkachuk in the postseason. However, that didn’t end up being the case as the Panthers steamrolled the Lightning in five games in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Still, the Lightning do possess an abundance of talent and clearly aren’t throwing in the towel when it comes to this veteran group. The usual suspects remain, and it’s hard to ever count out a team that has Andrei Vasilevskiy in net. While they’re not a team that’s worth categorizing as a potential Stanley Cup winner, a bold trade deadline move could put them over the top for a potential Stanley Cup run.
Toronto Maple Leafs (+2000)
I’m certainly not saying that the Maple Leafs are a team to which bettors should hitch their wagons, but they’re an intriguing team despite losing Mitch Marner this summer. While Marner is definitely a big deal, it’s a situation where both sides needed a divorce. Toronto still has all the makings of putting together a new version of the “Core Four” in Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Matthew Knies. Knies is expected to have a large uptick in production after recording a 29-goal season in 2024-25. Adding winger Matias Maccelli in a trade with the Utah Mammoth was a very underrated pickup. After all, Maccelli had a 57-point campaign just two seasons ago, so he could be a nice addition for the Maple Leafs. Nicolas Roy was also acquired in the Marner trade, which gives Toronto more depth up the middle of the ice. Are the Maple Leafs a viable Stanley Cup contender right now? Perhaps not, but this is going to be a talented team that could contend for the Atlantic Division title once again next season.
