NHL: Who will dethrone Panthers and Oilers? Title contenders

NHL: Who Will Challenge the Stanley Cup Finalists?

The NHL, especially in the salary cap era, is often characterized by changes and restructuring. The usual contenders revamp their rosters, while new teams emerge. That’s why it’s surprising to see the same two Stanley Cup finalists, the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers, in consecutive seasons. This is the first Cup rematch since 2008-09 and only the second since 1983-84. Adding Florida’s appearance in the 2023 final, the NHL hasn’t had fewer unique finalists in a three-year span (only three different teams) since 1954-56. The Panthers and Oilers’ dominance won’t last forever, and almost certainly won’t survive beyond 2025-26 if Connor McDavid doesn’t re-sign with Edmonton. However, for now, ESPN BET’s preseason odds again list Florida (+300) as the Eastern favorite and Edmonton (+400) as the Western favorite, suggesting another rematch is the most likely outcome. The key question is: if not Florida and Edmonton, who’s next in line to compete for the Cup? We analyze the most plausible contenders from each conference, ready to take advantage of any slip-up by the Panthers and/or Oilers, plus a couple of emerging teams that could spring a surprise.Note: All odds below are courtesy of ESPN BET.

Eastern Conference

Carolina Hurricanes

Odds to reach the final: +360 | To win the Cup: +800Why haven’t they succeeded yet?: It’s an excellent question that the Canes are still trying to answer. Despite reaching the postseason for seven consecutive years, Carolina’s 44 playoff wins have never led to an appearance in the Stanley Cup Final. This gives them the most accumulated wins in that period without reaching it at least once.

Along the way, the team has reached the Eastern Conference finals in two of the last three seasons, but couldn’t score enough to avoid a sweep by Florida in 2023. And their goaltending, always a major concern, couldn’t stop enough shots from the Panthers in 2025.

Why 2025-26 could be different?: Carolina will again rely on Pyotr Kochetkov and Frederik Andersen in goal, which is reason enough to wonder if things will be different than last year (when they combined for an .823 SV% in the loss in the Eastern Conference Finals to Florida). But new forward Nikolaj Ehlers should provide an offensive boost, while the addition of K’Andre Miller and prospect Alexander Nikishin give this blue line, which is usually a great strength anyway, more youth and potential, especially if Miller can regain his 2022-23 form after a drop-off in recent years. Otherwise, the Hurricanes rely on their familiar puck possession system to finally add a win against a Florida core that returns mostly intact from last year. We’ll see.

Tampa Bay Lightning

Odds to reach the final: +650 | To win the Cup: +1400Why haven’t they succeeded (recently)?: Tampa Bay has certainly had success before, winning two Cups (2020 and 2021) and reaching another final in 2022. And just when it seemed that dynasty was coming to an end, the Lightning bounced back in 2024-25, with their best goals-per-game differential since 2018-19 (+0.91). But, as in the 2019 postseason, that regular season success didn’t translate. The Lightning were eliminated in the first round by Florida in five games for the second consecutive year, a far cry from the old days of Bolts dominance in the state rivalry.

Why 2025-26 could be different?: First, the Lightning still have one of the most talented cores in the league, which gives reason to believe they can seriously compete for the Cup again. They lost little of importance during the offseason (defenseman Nick Perbix was the only real departure), although they also added little, and a team that was the fifth oldest in the NHL in 2024-25 isn’t getting any younger.

Someday Nikita Kucherov, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Victor Hedman, and Jake Guentzel will decline in performance. But until then, this team still has the potential to face Florida, even if the results of the last two playoffs are not what Tampa Bay has previously experienced in that rivalry.

New Jersey Devils

Odds to reach the final: +850 | To win the Cup: +1600

Why haven’t they succeeded yet?: A lot depends on Jack Hughes’ availability. When Hughes last played more than 62 games in a season in 2022-23, the Devils ranked No. 4 in the league in goals per game; with him missing 20 games in each of the last two seasons, New Jersey’s ranking in that metric fell to 12th in 2023-24 and then to 20th last season.

Along with that offensive slump, the team missed the playoffs in 2023-24 (costing coach Lindy Ruff his job) and lost in Round 1 to Carolina in five games a year ago, a disappointing end for a team that was third-best in goal differential and third-youngest (a promising combination!) in 2022-23.

Why 2025-26 could be different?: Hughes’ return to health at the start of the 2025-26 camp has New Jersey looking towards a return to the potential of a few years ago. The Devils have scored 3.13 GPG in the last two seasons with Hughes in the lineup, against 2.93 without him, which would make the difference between 12th and 21st place in the league in 2024-25.

To help them score even more, the Devils added Evgenii Dadonov this summer. Russian right winger Arseny Gritsyuk could also be an interesting addition. If they can resolve their contract stalemate with Hughes’ brother, Luke, the Devils could compete for the East, but they will need to figure out how to solve the problem of a Carolina team that eliminated them in 2023 and 2025. Is it worth the risk?

Ottawa Senators

Odds to reach the final: +1200 | To win the Cup: +3500 Ottawa finally broke its seven-year playoff drought in 2024-25 with a young core headlined by Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stützle, Jake Sanderson, and Shane Pinto, all of whom were 25 or younger a year ago. The Senators are still learning how to win, but they will return that same young core, plus good young defenseman Jordan Spence, to see if they can improve even more after a 19-point improvement in the standings last season.

Montreal Canadiens

Odds to reach the final: +2800 | To win the Cup: +5000 The Habs have made real progress in recent seasons: three consecutive campaigns with an improvement in goal difference, culminating in their first playoff qualification since 2021. Nick Suzuki’s 89 points were the most by a Canadian in almost three decades, and Cole Caufield’s 37 goals were the most by a Montreal player of his age since 1989-90. With that young duo leading the way and an improved roster that added defenseman Noah Dobson and forward Zack Bolduc, Montreal could finally be on the verge of something big. The rest of the East

• Toronto Maple Leafs (+1000 to reach the Stanley Cup Final)
• Washington Capitals (+1400)
• New York Rangers (+1600)
• Boston Bruins (+3300)
• Columbus Blue Jackets (+3300)
• Detroit Red Wings (+3300)
• Philadelphia Flyers (+3300)
• New York Islanders (+4000)
• Buffalo Sabres (+6000)
• Pittsburgh Penguins (+6000)

Western Conference

Colorado Avalanche

Odds to reach the final: +450 | To win the Cup: +800

Why haven’t they succeeded (recently)?: The Avs had one of the best teams in hockey history when they won the Cup in 2022, seemingly heralding a run of future success in the same style that the team enjoyed during the 90s and 2000s.

Instead, they fell victim to the familiar wear and tear that champions face during the salary cap era, between injuries (Gabriel Landeskog) and departures (Darcy Kuemper, Mikko Rantanen, Nazem Kadri, Andre Burakovsky). Colorado has remained among the league’s top teams, but their goal differential has decreased for four consecutive seasons.

Why 2025-26 Could Be Different?: Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar aren’t slowing down. They have collectively accumulated 438 points in the last two seasons, the most in consecutive years by any forward/defenseman duo in over three decades.

With that kind of talent at the core, reinforced with the return of the acquisition at the trade deadline Brock Nelson and the veteran additions of Brent Burns and Victor Olofsson, the Avs may have another run despite losing to the Dallas Stars in consecutive postseasons.

Vegas Golden Knights

Odds to reach the final: +450 | To win the Cup: +850

Why haven’t they succeeded (recently)?: The Golden Knights were better on paper last regular season (+0.68 goal differential per game) than they were when they won the Cup, still the only team that beat Florida in their last 12 playoff series, in 2023 (+0.52).

But the playoff offense that once carried them has faded, dropping from 4.00 goals per game in that Cup run to just 2.44 since, capped by two consecutive scoreless losses to Edmonton in the second round last spring. The talent and depth have still been there, but the results haven’t quite followed.Why 2025-26 could be different?: The main reason for optimism in Las Vegas is that the Knights caught the biggest fish of the 2025 offseason, acquiring star winger Mitch Marner in a sign-and-trade deal from Toronto in late June. Marner has averaged 29 adjusted goals, 65 adjusted assists, and 94 adjusted points per season since 2020-21, making him one of the most dangerous offensive threats (particularly among playmakers) in the league. While we’ve seen players take time to adjust to new systems and teammates, Marner will integrate into his new situation alongside talents like Jack Eichel, which is a terrifying pairing to think about in the playoffs (where Marner’s struggles have tended to be exaggerated).

Dallas Stars

Odds to reach the final: +475 | To win the Cup: +1000Why haven’t they succeeded yet?: Why, indeed? Like Carolina, the Stars keep hitting a wall just before the Cup final: Dallas has accumulated 29 playoff wins in the last three seasons, the most for a team in a three-year span without reaching the final, and all it has produced are consecutive defeats to Edmonton in the conference finals. Some historical franchises with similar failures eventually succeeded, but the persistent question for the Stars is whether their current group will ever be able to take the final step.Why 2025-26 could be different?: Mikko Rantanen will be with the team for a full season, which can only help after the Finnish winger became the best player in NHL history to play for three different teams in the same campaign (Avalanche, Hurricanes, Stars) a year ago. Otherwise, the Stars also reshuffled the deck quite a bit during the offseason, firing coach Pete DeBoer (bringing back former coach Glen Gulutzan) and experiencing the largest net loss in goals above replacement of any team. That may not seem like cause for optimism at all, but the Panthers could tell you that sometimes a drastic shake-up of identity is exactly what a team needs to finally overcome the obstacle. Is it worth the risk?

Los Angeles Kings

Odds to reach the final: +1000 | Win the Cup: +2000

It might seem crazy to think that the Kings, of all teams, could dethrone the Oilers in the West, as L.A. has lost to Edmonton in four consecutive postseasons, becoming only the fourth team in any of the four major men’s leagues to lose four straight playoff matchups to the same opponent (without a head-to-head win preceding the streak).

However, the Kings remain intriguing due to their mix of youth and experience. And not for nothing, their offseason additions included Corey Perry, whose team has reached the Cup Final in five of the last six seasons.

Utah Mammoth

Odds to reach the final: +2000 | To win the Cup: +4000 It’s not very difficult to get excited about the Mammoth as the next potential contender from the West. This was the youngest team in the league a year ago, led by Clayton Keller, Mikhail Sergachev, Logan Cooley, and Dylan Guenther, all 26 or younger, and the team improved its goal differential for the third consecutive season. In addition to that base, Utah traded for the talented forward JJ Peterka and signed veteran defenseman Nate Schmidt and forward Brandon Tanev during an offseason that was a net positive in added talent. Going back to their days in Arizona, this franchise has reached the playoffs only once (2020) since 2012, but better days are ahead in Utah. The rest of the West

• Winnipeg Jets (+1200 to reach the Stanley Cup Final)
• Minnesota Wild (+1700)
• St. Louis Blues (+2200)
• Vancouver Canucks (+3000)
• Nashville Predators (+3300)
• Calgary Flames (+4000)
• Anaheim Ducks (+5000)
• Seattle Kraken (+10000)
• Chicago Blackhawks (+15000)
• San Jose Sharks (+30000)