Tuesday, September 29th, is quickly approaching as NHL teams prepare for an expanded regular-season schedule that includes 84 games. And while the Western Conference is packed with talented teams, fans who trade on NHL prediction markets have homed in on the Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers as the frontrunners to reach the 2026-27 NHL Stanley Cup Final.
That may seem unfair to the Vegas Golden Knights, who surprised the league earlier this year by blowing through their Western Conference rivals during the postseason. However, the Golden Knights’ downgraded price is ideal for bargain hunters who believe Vegas will return to the Stanley Cup Final in June.
Forecasters will be lucky to find Colorado Avalanche Western Conference winner contracts for less than 20¢ each. Colorado was absolutely embarrassed in the Western Conference Final in May of this year, getting swept 4-0 by an inspired Vegas team, but the defending Presidents’ Trophy winner is still the obvious frontrunner in the Kalshi WCF winner’s market.
Colorado center Nathan MacKinnon is projected to rack up 121 points this regular season, and Martin Necas is coming off a massively impressive 88-point season that only turned sour during the WCF. The Colorado Avalanche are our pick to win the Western Conference Final and compete for the Stanley Cup. However, we believe the Florida Panthers will ultimately win the NHL championship.
The Edmonton Oilers have a “Cup-or-die” mentality going into the regular season, which begins in just 11 days. Mike Babcock will lead the Oilers behind the bench, as speedster Connor McDavid returns to lead the team to what it hopes will be a Stanley Cup Final series win.
Traders can pick up the Oilers’ contract at 15¢ during the preseason, which will be abbreviated due to the addition of two more regular-season games to the schedule. Edmonton is expected to dominate the Pacific Division, but whether it can outperform the Avalanche in the postseason remains to be seen. Last year, Edmonton fell short in the first round against the Anaheim Ducks by a series score of 4-2.
The Oilers have also acquired goaltender Frederik Andersen from the Hurricanes. If Andersen can remain healthy (he sustained a knee injury that kept him out of the championship series last season), he could play a key role in helping Edmonton achieve Stanley Cup Final glory for the first time since 1990.
The Edmonton Oilers will begin their 2026-27 NHL regular-season campaign on September 29th, against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Place. The Colorado Avalanche will play their first regular-season game on September 30th, against the Los Angeles Kings at Ball Arena.
Broadcasting rights for NHL games are divided between ESPN, ABC, and TNT this year. Live streamers can catch some games each week with an NHL+ subscription, but cable TV viewers still have the best “package deal.”
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