NHL Betting Picks

The NHL returns at the end of September with a new Stanley Cup champion, an expanded regular-season schedule and a dramatically altered collection of contenders following a busy summer of trades, free agency and the 2026 NHL Draft.

The NHL regular season begins on September 29, 2026, and Opening Night immediately provides several fascinating matchups. The defending champion Carolina Hurricanes raise their Stanley Cup banner before hosting the Florida Panthers, winners of the championship in 2024 and 2025.

Toronto then hosts Montreal in an Original Six rivalry game that could feature the NHL debut of No.1 draft pick Gavin McKenna. Elsewhere, the New York Rangers visit the Boston Bruins, Vancouver travels to Edmonton and Western Conference champion Vegas hosts Chicago.

There is a significant change to the schedule this season. Every team will play 84 regular-season games, up from 82, producing an NHL-record 1,344-game campaign. Each franchise will play 42 times at home and 42 on the road before the regular season concludes with all 32 teams in action on April 10, 2027.

The calendar also features international and outdoor hockey. Winnipeg hosts Montreal in the Heritage Classic on October 25, Carolina and Seattle play twice in Helsinki in November, and Ottawa and Chicago meet twice in Düsseldorf in December.

The Winter Classic takes place on December 31, when the Utah Mammoth face the Colorado Avalanche at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City.

Twenty years after their first championship, the Carolina Hurricanes became Stanley Cup champions again. Carolina defeated the Vegas Golden Knights in six games, completing an exceptional postseason with a 3-0 victory in Game 6 in Las Vegas.

Brandon Bussi stopped all 22 shots he faced in the clincher, while Jackson Blake, Taylor Hall and Nikolaj Ehlers scored for the Hurricanes. Carolina completed its playoff run with a remarkable 16-3 record, requiring the fewest games to capture the Stanley Cup since Edmonton went 16-2 in 1988. Captain Jordan Staal was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, adding another chapter to a Carolina career stretching back more than a decade.

For Vegas, defeat ended an impressive run back to the Final, but the Golden Knights remain among the teams capable of challenging again.

Supporters do not have to wait too long for the rematch. Vegas hosts Carolina on December 21, before the Golden Knights travel to Raleigh for the second meeting on January 17.

One of the most anticipated prospects in recent years finally heard his name called at the 2026 NHL Draft.

The Toronto Maple Leafs selected Gavin McKenna with the first overall pick, adding the highly rated Canadian winger to a forward group already containing Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Matthew Knies. McKenna arrives after an outstanding season with Penn State, where he recorded 51 points and established himself as the leading prospect in his draft class.

Swedish winger Ivar Stenberg went second to the San Jose Sharks, potentially giving San Jose another major offensive piece alongside Macklin Celebrini.

For Toronto, however, McKenna represents considerably more than another talented prospect. The Maple Leafs missed the playoffs last season and have spent the summer reshaping their roster. Adding an elite young forward with the first pick gives Toronto another potential cornerstone as it attempts to build its next championship contender. And McKenna could receive his introduction to NHL hockey in about as Canadian a setting as possible: Toronto against Montreal on Opening Night.

Few trades generated more attention this summer than Brady Tkachuk leaving the Ottawa Senators for the Florida Panthers. Florida acquired the former Senators captain in June in exchange for a huge collection of draft capital, including two 2026 first-round picks, a conditional 2029 first-round selection and a 2027 second-round pick.

The trade also created one of the NHL's most compelling partnerships. Brady will now play alongside his brother Matthew Tkachuk*in Florida. The pair had previously represented the United States together internationally, but 2026-27 will be their first season as NHL teammates.

The reunion game should be appointment viewing. On October 21, Brady returns to Ottawa with the Panthers to face the Senators for the first time since the trade. Given his eight seasons in Ottawa and status as the franchise's former captain, it promises to be one of the most emotional nights of the early season.

Tkachuk was far from the only major name on the move though.

Two-time Stanley Cup-winning goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky left the Florida Panthers and signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs, giving Toronto an experienced No.1 goaltender as part of its significant offseason overhaul.

The Maple Leafs also added Darren Raddysh and Nick Paul alongside McKenna, substantially reshaping a roster that missed the playoffs in 2025-26. Bobrovsky faces Florida for the first time as a Maple Leaf in Toronto on December 3. His return to South Florida comes on March 6, 2027, when Toronto visits Amerant Bank Arena. Having helped the Panthers win consecutive Stanley Cups in 2024 and 2025, Bobrovsky should receive a memorable reception from his former supporters.

Another familiar face has returned home. Patrick Kane has rejoined the Chicago Blackhawks, signing a two-year contract to return to the franchise where he became one of the greatest American players in NHL history. Kane won three Stanley Cups during his first spell in Chicago and returns after spending the previous three seasons with Detroit. He faces the Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena for the first time since leaving them on October 29.

Other significant summer trades included Jordan Kyrou moving from St. Louis to Washington, Simon Nemec joining Calgary and William Eklund moving from San Jose to Ottawa.

There is a packed schedule ahead, but several dates immediately stand out: