Believe it or not, it's time for National Hockey League fans to get excited about the new season. Things are set to get started on Tuesday night, with three games for the opening day of games. Then, a full schedule will arrive on Wednesday. So, who should people keep an eye on moving forward? Well, it's no surprise that the Florida Panthers are the 2025 Stanley Cup favorites with the season here.
Last season, Florida took on Edmonton in the Stanley Cup Finals and everyone expected it to potentially go the distance. In the end, the Panthers won in six games, with people all over the state still celebrating that win. The focus is on repeating, which is not going to be easy for Florida. However, the staff and players are focused on the task at hand, with a three-peat something they're working towards.
| Stanley Cup odds |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers to win | +650 | +650 | +650 |
| Oilers to win | +750 | +750 | +750 |
| Canes to win | +850 | +850 | +850 |
| Stars to win | +850 | +850 | +850 |
“Everybody here likes coming to work,” Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said in a recent interview. “We want to work harder than anybody else, if we can. And then we want to try to have more fun than anybody else. If you do the first, you get to do the second fairly easily.”
According to the best sports sites, the Panthers hold +650 NHL betting odds to win the Stanley Cup title this year. Plenty of other NHL betting sites have them at No. 1 too, though other teams are in the mix as well. It will be interesting to see how things end up going down, but it wouldn't be a surprise at all if the Panthers get this done. However, we're going in a different direction for our selection.
Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers are the best rivalry in hockey
In last 6 years, both teams:
- Back to Back Championships
- Three Straight Finals Appearances
- Beat the other team en route to Stanley Cup championshipsFlorida is a hockey state. #GoBolts #TimeToHunt
— John Lucido (@JLucido30) October 5, 2025
The Edmonton Oilers are our pick to win the 2026 Stanley Cup
While a lot of people are riding high on the Panthers, the Edmonton Oilers are our pick to win the 2026 Stanley Cup. The Oilers were downright sensational last year, winning the Easter Conference title. Unfortunately, the Oilers weren't able to close things out, losing to Florida with the glory on the line. However, revenge is on this team's mind now and its coach just signed an extension.
"In the NHL, you never know what's going to happen, so it's nice to have it out of mind and it's done and now we're just worried about the regular season," Coach Kris Knoblauch said. "Whether it was happening or not, I would still be worrying about the regular season, but now that I have that security, it's nice and I don't have to worry about it and I can spend all my attention to our next game."
Sounds like #Oilers and Connor McDavid have nudged forward conversations on a contract extension - the door is wide open now for a deal to be in place before Edmonton's season opener.
More now on Frankly Hockey.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) October 6, 2025
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As for the action back on the ice, Connor McDavid remains one of the best players in the league and he's going to want to remind everyone of that sooner rather than later. McDavid is a superstar and he has Stanley Cup title goals on his mind. Will he and the Oilers be able to make that happen? We think so, as we're doubling down with them as our selection.
The Stars, Hurricanes and others are also in the Stanley Cup hunt
While a lot of the focus is on Edmonton and Florida, keep in mind that the Stars, Hurricanes and others are also in the Stanley Cup hunt. From our chair, Dallas is going to be a serious threat in the Western Conference for Edmonton to try and hold off. With the season here, people are already wondering if maybe they'll be in the conference finals.
Dallas holds strong Stanley Cup Finals odds as well, with them being at +850. The Hurricanes are going to be the main threats in the Eastern Conference for the Panthers, as that's an in-state battle that everyone loves watching and keeping a close eye on. There always seems to be drama whenever those two sides go to battle.
With all of that said, it sure looks like this is going to be another season to remember for fans everywhere. Opening Night is going to be fun to watch and then a long campaign will be here. Will Florida get a three-peat done for its fans to celebrate. Don't be shocked at all if that ends up being the case.
