Panthers among Stanley Cup favorites after Tkachuk blockbuster

Field Level Media|published: Mon 22nd June, 19:53 2026

Ottawa Senators left wing Brady Tkachuk against the Florida Panthers on April 7, 2026.

The blockbuster trade that unites Brady Tkachuk with his brother in Florida also drove oddsmakers to move the Panthers among the favorites to win the 2026-27 Stanley Cup.

Coming off a season in which the Panthers finished 14th in the Eastern Conference and missed the playoffs, general manager Bill Zito made the bold move of parting with a package of picks that includes three first-rounders. Florida also sent Mackie Samoskevich to the Seattle Kraken earlier on Sunday before landing Brady Tkachuk to team with brother Matthew.

The Panthers were being offered at +1100 by BetMGM to win next season's Stanley Cup before the trade and +800 after. The book reported Monday that 64% of all bets placed on the next Stanley Cup champion since the trade had backed the Panthers.

The only teams with shorter title odds at BetMGM are the defending champion Carolina Hurricanes and the Colorado Avalanche, each at +750. The Panthers leapt past the Vegas Golden Knights (+900) while also pulling away from the Edmonton Oilers (+1100).

The Golden Knights remain the book's biggest liability, having been backed by 80.6% of all money wagered on next season's champion. That's despite having drawn only 7.7% of the total bets placed. The highest percentage of total bets have backed Colorado (16.5%), followed by Florida (12.6%) and Carolina (11.5%)

Meanwhile, the Ottawa Senators' Stanley Cup odds lengthened from +1800 to +2500 after parting with the face of their franchise.

Brady Tkachuk, 26, was selected in the first round (fourth overall) by the Senators in the 2018 NHL Draft. Debuting immediately after he was drafted, the forward scored 463 points (213 goals, 250 assists) in 572 games across eight seasons for Ottawa.

Brady and Matthew, 28, helped Team USA secure Olympic gold earlier this year, and now they aim to bring more hardware to the Panthers after Florida missed the playoffs following consecutive Stanley Cup wins.

The Senators made their first two playoff appearances in Tkachuk's tenure the last two seasons, but haven't advanced out of the first round since 2017.

Ottawa will receive Florida's two first-round picks in this year's draft -- No. 9 and No. 25 overall -- along with a first-round pick in 2029 that is top-10 protected and a second-round pick in 2027.

--Field Level Media