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Looking ahead to the 2026-27 NHL Season
The 2026-27 season will mark the 109th season and will be, for the first time since 1994, an eighty-four game regular season instead of the normal eighty-two.
Calgary Flames fans will be saying goodbye to Scotiabank Saddledome as this will be their home for the last time this season before their move to their new home at Scotia Place next season.
NHL Global Series: The international games for 2026-27 will be held in Finland and Germany this season. The Kraken and Hurricanes are playing two matches scheduled on the 12th and 14th of November at the Veikkaus Arena in Helsinki.
Then in December, the NHL returns to Europe with the Blackhawks and Senators featuring in two games on the 18th and 20th at the PSD Bank Dome in Düsseldorf.
The 2027 Winter Classic will be played at Rice–Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City 2027, with the Mammoth hosting the Avs. The NHL Heritage Classic returns this year, too, as two of three outdoor games, the Jets and Canadiens will play at the Princess Auto Stadium in October.
The other outdoor game will be the 18th NHL Stadium Series matchup, with the Stars and VGK playing at the AT&T Stadium in February (20th), home of the Dallas Cowboys.
In other news, after no All-Star game in 2026 because it clashed with the Olympic Games, it returns in 2027 on the 7th of February at UBS Arena in Elmont.
The tipsters on OLBG will be looking forward to the new season, especially the best NHL tipsters. These are tipsters who, over the past twelve months, have all made a profit with their ice hockey predictions!
Best Ice Hockey Betting Sites UK
Who lifts the Stanley Cup?
Who Will Win The Stanley Cup 2027?
The bookie's pre-season favourites to win the 2027 Stanley Cup are the Florida Panthers. They won back-to-back championships in 2024 & 2025 but failed to make the postseason in 2026 after a disappointing season, and will be looking to bounce back.
After ending a twenty-year wait, the Carolina Hurricanes won just their second Stanley Cup last season, but the question was, could they back that up? The bookies have them priced up along with the Avs just behind the favourites.
To see which team the OLBG ice hockey tipsters are predicting to win the 2027 Stanley Cup, head over to the NHL Picks page. Not only is the NHL covered there, but other great tournaments like the KHL and SHL.
| NHL Stanley Cup 2026/27 08 Jun @ 01:00 - Win Tournament | ||
|---|---|---|
| FLA Panthers | 8.00 | |
| CAR Hurricanes | 8.50 | |
| COL Avalanche | 8.50 | |
| EDM Oilers | 11.00 | |
| VGS Golden Knights | 12.00 | |
| TB Lightning | 13.00 | |
| MIN Wild | 15.00 | |
| DAL Stars | 17.00 | |
| OTT Senators | 23.00 | |
| MTL Canadiens | 23.00 | |
2025-26 NHL Season Recap
The Carolina Hurricanes topped the Eastern Conference after amassing a total of one hundred and thirteen points, whilst over in the Western Conference, the Colorado Avalanche finished with one hundred and twenty-one points, which was enough to land them the Presidents' Trophy,
Season Top Point Scorers (Regular Season)
- Connor McDavid (EDM) 138pts (48 Goals, 90 Assists)
- Nikita Kucherov (TBL) 130pts (32 Goals, 84 Assists)
- Nathan MacKinnon (COL) 127pts (53 Goals, 74 Assists)
- Macklin Celebrini (SJS) 115pts (45 Goals, 70 Assists)
- Mark Scheifele (WPG) 103pts (36 Goals, 67 Assists)
Who won the 2026 Stanley Cup?
The Carolina Hurricanes' only previous Stanley Cup win before 2026 was back in 2006; in fact, 2026 was only their third time they had appeared in the NHL Stanley Cup Finals, with a defeat in 2002 being the other.
As already touched on, they finished top of the Eastern Conference, winning 53 of their 82 regular-season matches and finishing four points ahead of the Buffalo Sabres.
They opened up in the playoffs with a 4-0 series win over the Senators and then backed that up by also whitewashing the Flyers to book their place in the Conference Final.
The Canadiens were the first team to put a loss on the Canes' playoff run, but that 1-0 lead turned into a 4-1 defeat with the Canes advancing to their third Stanley Cup Final.
They came up against the Vegas Golden Knights in the final, and it was close. VGK went 1-0 up, then back to 1-1, VGK went 2-1 up, but again the Canes squared it up at 2-2 and then went on to win the next two to secure a 4-2 series win.
What is the Line-up for the 2026-27 Season?
As things stand, this is the lineup for the 2026-27 season.
Atlantic Division (Eastern Conference)
| Boston Bruins | Buffalo Sabres | Detroit Red Wings |
| Florida Panthers | Montreal Canadiens | Ottawa Senators |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | Toronto Maple Leafs |
Central Division (Western Conference)
| Chicago Blackhawks | Colorado Avalanche | Dallas Stars |
| Minnesota Wild | Nashville Predators | St. Louis Blues |
| Utah Mammoth | Winnipeg Jets |
Pacific Division (Western Conference)
| Anaheim Ducks | Calgary Flames | Edmonton Oilers |
| Los Angeles Kings | San Jose Sharks | Seattle Kraken |
| Vancouver Canucks | Vegas Golden Knights |
Metropolitan Division (Eastern Conference)
| Carolina Hurricanes | Columbus Blue Jackets | New Jersey Devils |
| New York Islanders | New York Rangers | Philadelphia Flyers |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | Washington Capitals |
Coaching Changes for 2026-27
Heading into the 2026-27 season, there are already a lot of changes in coaches from the start of the previous season.
- Oilers: Mike Babcock replaces Kris Knoblauch
- Kings: Peter Laviolette replaces Jim Hiller
- Maple Leafs: Jim Hiller replaces Craig Berube
- Canucks: Manny Malhotra replaces Adam Foote
- Golden Knights: Ryan Craig replaces Bruce Cassidy
Who has won the Most Stanley Cups?
- 24 - Montreal Canadiens
- 13 - Toronto Maple Leafs
- 11 - Detroit Red Wings
By far the most successful team in winning the Stanley Cup is the Montreal Canadiens; they have won it a total of twenty-four times and have a .706 win percentage when making the finals, having also lost ten times. A lot of their wins came some time ago; they made ten consecutive finals between 1951 & 1960, winning six of those, including five consecutive. They made a total of six finals in the 1960s with a very good return of five Stanley Cup wins. They won all six finals they appeared in during the 1970s, and they won their last Stanley Cup in 1993; their only final appearance since was in 2021, so whilst they have a good record, their recent record is not so good.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are in the same boat as the Canadiens with all of their wins coming early on, their last success, which was the thirteenth time they had lifted the Stanley Cup was back in 1967, between 1942 and 1967 they made it to twelve finals and had an excellent record by winning ten of those, they have appeared in a total of twenty-one finals and have notched up a total of thirteen wins, which makes their win percentage in the final .619.
There is only one other franchise that has lifted the Stanley Cup more than ten times, and is the leading American franchise behind the two Canadians, that is the Detroit Red Wings, who have lost more than they have won in the Stanley Cup finals with eleven victories and thirteen defeats. Their first appearance was back in 1934 when losing to the Chicago Blackhawks; however, they returned in 1936 & 1937 to win back-to-back cups, but the 1940s were not a good one for them, despite making it to six finals, they only lifted the cup once (1943), but the 1950s brought better luck with wins in 1950, 1952, 1954 & 1955. They have made five finals since 1997, in which they have won four, but when last seen (2009), they tasted defeat.
Most Stanley Cup Appearances?
Six teams have made it to the Stanley Cup finals more than ten times; the Canadiens lead the way with thirty-five appearances, with their last coming in 2021, and the Red Wings are next best with twenty-four appearances, with their last coming in 2009.
The other two to make it twenty or more times are the Maple Leafs with twenty-one finals, but they have not made any final since 1967 and then the Bruins, who have appeared in twenty finals, their most recent being in 2019.
Two more have hit double figures, the Blackhawks with thirteen and the Rangers with eleven; the Blackhawks last appeared in 2015, whilst, for the Rangers, it was in 2014.
- 35 - Montreal Canadiens
- 24 - Detroit Red Wings
- 21 - Toronto Maple Leafs
- 20 - Boston Bruins
- 13 - Chicago Blackhawks
- 11 - New York Rangers
Who Has Never Won The Stanley Cup?
Of the current thirty-two franchises in the NHL, a total of twenty-seven of those have at least made a Stanley Cup final; the Columbus Blue Jackets, Minnesota Wild, Winnipeg Jets, Utah Mammoth and the Seattle Kraken are the five teams that have never made it to a Stanley Cup final.
Along with those five teams, there are an additional five that have never won a Stanley Cup despite making it to the finals:
- Vancouver Canucks (0-3)
- Buffalo Sabres (0-2)
- Nashville Predators (0-1)
- Ottawa Senators (0-1)
- San Jose Sharks (0-1)
NHL Conference Finals Statistics
When it comes to conference finals, these can be very demanding and lengthy, as you have the two best teams from each conference battling it out for a place in the Stanley Cup finals, so the question is just how much does this take out of the teams?
Since 1994, from the 60 conference series (30x Eastern & 30x Western), a total of 16 of those have gone to the maximum need of seven games to settle the series, 11 of those have been on the Eastern side of things, and only 5 on the Western side.
The main question is, for those playing 7 games, just how much of an effect does that have on the team? Are they more tired going into the Stanley Cup finals?
NHL Eastern Conference Finals Statistics
Of the 11 Eastern teams that needed 7 games to win their conference final, an amazing 8 of those went on to win the Stanley Cup!
9 of those faced a team that needed less than 7 games to win their Western title, and only 1 of those failed to win the Stanley Cup, which was the Panthers in 1996, when losing to the Red Wings.
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- 1994 - NY Rangers (7 games) beat VAN Canucks (5 games)
- 2003 - NJ Devils (7 games) beat ANA Ducks (4 games)
- 2004 - TB Lightning (7 games) beat CAL Flames (6 games)
- 2006 - CAR Hurricanes (7 games) beat EDM Oilers (5 games)
- 2011 - BOS Bruins (7 games) beat VAN Canucks (5 games)
- 2016 - PIT Penguins (7 games) beat SJ Sharks (6 games)
- 2017 - PIT Penguins (7 games) beat NAS Predators (6 games)
- 2018 - WAS Capitals (7 games) beat VGS Golden Knights (5 games)
Eastern Conference Final Whitewashers
There have been mixed results for teams that have whitewashed their Conference final; the last to do so was the Panthers in 2023, who went on to lose 4-1 to the VGK in the Stanley Cup final.
Before that, it was the Bruins in 2019 who went on to lose 4-3 to the Blues in the Stanley Cup final and again the Bruins in 2013, and again they went on to be defeated in the Stanley Cup final (4-2 Blackhawks), but four years earlier, the Pens did lift the Stanley Cup in 2009 after defeating the Red Wings 4-3.
If you go back further to 1982, when it was the Prince of Wales Conference, in total, we have seen just six Eastern teams whitewash their conference final 4-0, with three of those going on to win the Stanley Cup, so mixed results.
NHL Western Conference Finals Statistics
The Western teams are no different, although there seem to be more clear-cut outcomes as there have been fewer seven-game conference series.
Since 1994, only three teams have needed seven games and gone on to play an Eastern team that won in under seven games; all three of those have gone on to win the Stanley Cup.
- 1999 - DAL Stars (7 games) beat BUF Sabres (5 games)
- 2002 - DET Red Wings (7 games) beat CAR Hurricanes (6 games)
- 2014 - LA Kings (7 games) beat NY Rangers (6 games)
Western Conference Final Whitewashers
Since 1994 and the creation of the Western Conference as we know it, only four teams have made it to the Stanley Cup final by whitewashing their Conference final: Anaheim in 2003, who went on to lose 4-3 to the Devils.
The Blackhawks had better success in 2010 when, after beating the Sharks to win the Conference title, they went on to beat the Flyers 4-2 in the Stanley Cup final.
The Colorado Avalanche in 2022 was another, a team well thought of throughout the season that only needed twenty games in the playoffs, which included a whitewash of the Oilers in the conference final before defeating the Lightning in the final.
The most recent was the Vegas Golden Knights in 2026, after whitewashing the Avs, they went on to lose to the Hurricanes 4-2 in the final.
Looking further back, between 1982 & 1993 (Clarence Campbell Conference), three teams made it through to the Stanley Cup via a whitewash, and only one of those went on to win the Stanley Cup.
The Stanley Cup Finals Strategy
That means in total, since 1994, twelve teams have made it to the Stanley Cup Finals, having needed seven games in their conference series and playing against a team that won their conference in fewer than seven games. Of those twelve teams, eleven went on to win the Stanley Cup.
Below are the number of games needed in the conference series to get to the Stanley Cup finals. In brackets is the number of times those have gone on to win the Stanley Cup. You can see that a seven-game winner has won half (13-26) of the Stanley Cups!
Those going into the Stanley Cup finals on the back of a five-game series have a poor record, with only 5 Cup wins from a total of 19 teams, which is a poor record, although the 2026 winner came from that.
| Games Needed | Eastern | Western | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Games | 4 (1) | 4 (2) | 8 (3) |
| 5 Games | 8 (2) | 11 (3) | 19 (5) |
| 6 Games | 8 (3) | 11 (7) | 19 (10) |
| 7 Games | 11 (9) | 5 (4) | 16 (13) |
It would appear that fitness is not a concern for those playing more games; it could be more of a mental advantage. Coming through a seven-game series means you are winning game seven, which would be a massive confidence boost for the team, and they seem to take that confidence in the Stanley Cup finals, given their incredible record of 11 wins from 12!
The other factor is having a recently played game. Those who whitewash their conference final will be sitting around waiting for the other series to be completed.
So, siding with those who have won a seven-game conference series to win the Stanley Cup is certainly based on previous seasons, a good NHL Stanley Cup strategy to be on the right side of.
If this is a strategy you are looking to follow, then head over to our Recommended Hockey Bookies article for advice on which bookie to use when playing your NHL bets.
NHL Stanley Cup Finals: Who Is Better? Eastern Conference Vs Western Conference
Since 1994, the Eastern Conference teams have just edged out the Western Conference with eighteen wins vs thirteen wins over the thirty-one* finals.
The 2021 finals did not count as they were different, but before that, the Eastern Conference had produced four of the last five winners.
Domination seems to switch from one conference to the other over time. From 1996 to 2002, the Western teams won six of the seven finals, and then the Eastern teams won three in a row (2003-05).
The tide turned again between 2007 & 2015, with the Western teams winning seven of the nine finals, including four on the bounce between 2012 & 2015 and then the Eastern dominance as already mentioned returned.
| Seasons | Dominant Conference |
|---|---|
| 1994-95 | Both were won by Eastern teams |
| 1996-02 | 6 of 7 won by Western teams |
| 2003-06 | All 3 were won by Eastern teams |
| 2007-15 | 7 of 9 won by Western teams |
| 2016-20 | 4 of 5 won by Eastern teams |
| 2022-23 | Won by a Western team |
| 2023-26 | Won by an Eastern team |
*The 2005 season was not included as the season was cancelled, and the 2021 final was not included in the conference statistics as there were no conference playoffs.
Author Information
Andy Powell manages this NHL Stanley Cup Preview & Betting Guide and other hockey content in this section of the site, as well as the Ice Hockey Tipsters in the OLBG tipster competition in his role in the OLBG Expert Team. Andy meticulously updates the date and results for these pieces and is an erstwhile Penguins fan in the NHL. He provides Ice Hockey betting advice in our bookmaker reviews, as well as providing a huge contribution to the Best Ice Hockey Betting Sites Guide.
Andy Powell
Expert Guide
