Hurricanes’ repeat bid, superstar trade requests, who will win the Stanley Cup and other 2026-27 NHL season storylines

The 2026-27 NHL season has arrived. After a summer filled with changes across the league, the journey to crown a Stanley Cup champion begins.

Here’s a look at several storylines to follow as the puck drops on another hockey season.

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More games and salaries begin to skyrocket

First off, the regular season is now 84 games, not 82, after the league and the NHL Players’ Association agreed to the change — the first such to the schedule since 1993-94. That means division rivals will meet each other four times per season.

Love a good emergency backup goaltender (EBUG) story? Those are in the past as teams now must employ a dedicated EBUG, who will travel with them during the season. The EBUGs must not have NHL experience or have appeared in more than 80 professional games over the past three years.

A new CBA is in place which reduces the maximum length of a contract a player can sign with their own team from eight to seven years. Should a player hit the free-agent market and sign elsewhere, the maximum length is now six years.

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The salary cap continues to rise with the ceiling for the 2026-27 season set at $104 million. We’ve seen this offseason how salaries are beginning to jump and it’s going to get only better for players who will need new contracts over the next several years.

For the 2027-28 season, the cap ceiling will reach $113.5 million and it is expected to hit $127.5 million come 2028-29.

Three teams have repeated as Stanley Cup champions in the past decade. Playing 82 games plus playoffs with a target on your back isn’t easy — just ask the 2017-18 Pittsburgh Penguins and 2021-22 Tampa Bay Lightning. Playing 82 games while battling through injury hell is just as difficult — just ask the 2025-26 Florida Panthers.

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Carolina will be without Seth Jarvis to start the season following June shoulder surgery. The injury, which had been affecting him since Nov. 2023, was set to keep him out 4-6 months, but the team’s leading goal scorer from last season could return earlier than anticipated.

The Hurricanes will look similar to the team that celebrated in June against the Vegas Golden Knights. Goaltender Frederik Andersen is the only notable name that departed over the summer, joining the Edmonton Oilers on a one-year deal. That leaves playoff hero Brandon Bussi and Pyotr Kochetkov to man the nets.

Rod Brind’Amour’s charges will face stiff competition in the Eastern Conference. The up-and-coming Montreal Canadiens are set to become a threat in the Metropolitan Division, while many expect the Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers, and Washington Capitals to bounce-back after disappointing seasons.

Can the Florida Panthers claw back to the top?

Florida led the NHL last season with 541 man-games lost to injury, over 100 more than the Buffalo Sabres, who were next on the list. Beginning with captain Aleksander Barkov’s season-ending knee injury during preseason to Matthew Tkachuk not starting his season until January to Seth Jones, Dmitry Kulikov and Aaron Ekblad, among many others, missing time, their 14th-place finish in the Eastern Conference wasn’t a surprise.

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The injury bug has already bitten them this season as Brad Marchand is expected to miss all of October after offseason surgery.

Refreshing the roster, general manager Bill Zito acquired Brady Tkachuk from the Ottawa Senators, reuniting him with his brother Matthew. He also brought in Lars Eller and goaltender Jacob Markstrom, who will replace Sergei Bobrovsky after he signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

After making three straight Stanley Cup Finals, and winning two of them, the toll of deep playoff runs derailed the Panthers’ 2025-26 season. Once fully healthy and invigorated by the addition of another Tkachuk brother, Florida should be able to return to being a very difficult matchup in the East.

It’s possible that both superstars hit unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2028. Is that likely? No, which means this season could see their individual futures change course depending on the success of the Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs.

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After losing in the Stanley Cup Final two straight seasons to the Panthers, Edmonton lost in six games to the Anaheim Ducks in the first round. McDavid labeled his team as “average” after failing to meet its high expectations. “It was kind of a vanilla year,” he told ESPN.com.

The noise around the future of the three-time Hart Trophy winner and six-time Art Ross Trophy winner has only grown in recent seasons with the Oilers falling short of a championship. McDavid hasn’t been shy about voicing his opinion about needed changes. Mike Babcock was controversially hired to right the ship, but will that be enough to lead to success?

The Maple Leafs finishing last season with the fifth-worst record in the NHL led them to winning the draft lottery and selecting Gavin McKenna No. 1 overall. There were questions about whether Matthews would be moved in the summer following the need for changes after another season of falling short by the team.

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John Chayka is the new GM and franchise legend Mats Sundin is the new senior executive adviser for hockey operations. Changes were made with new faces like Bobrovsky, Kirill Marchenko, Jack Roslovic, and Darren Raddysh among those added.

During training camp, Matthews expressed his desire to remain with the organization saying, “My intent was always to be here.” But another underwhelming Maple Leafs season, coupled with time running out on the captain’s contract, may result in bigger changes next summer.

Two trade requests and an unresolved contract future will hang above this season until all three reach some sort of resolution.

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Hellebuyck quietly asked for a trade in April and then went public with his request in August after Winnipeg Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff was unable to find the right deal. Cheveldayoff said the door remains open for the three-time Vezina Trophy winner to return to the team, but that seems unlikely.

There are four more seasons after this one left on Hellebuyck’s contract. Cheveldayoff said this month that his priority is winning and a trade will not be rushed. But how quickly will the situation change if a team is getting subpar goaltending, suffers an injury in net or the Jets’ idea of a return is lowered?

Hughes could hit the free agent market next summer and seeing Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar’s recently signed extension that will pay him an average of $20.4 million per season, the 2023-24 Norris Trophy winner will likely surpass that amount with his next contract.

But will that be in Minnesota where Wild GM Bill Guerin has been trying to get an extension worked out? Could it be elsewhere as many have speculated that Hughes may sign a shorter-term deal to match up with his brother, Jack, who can be an unrestricted free agent in 2030?

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Guerin has said he’s set no deadline for Hughes to re-sign and this situation could linger into next summer.

Larkin is no longer the captain of the Detroit Red Wings after requesting a trade. Unlike the suspended Hellebuyck, Larkin is active with the team. The center also has four years left on his current contract, one reason why former GM Steve Yzerman was in no rush to move him while seeking the best possible return.

It’s now interim GM Shawn Horcoff’s turn to find a resolution to this saga that is good for both sides. Larkin has reportedly expanded his trade list, but will Detroit’s asking price come down? 

The Red Wings open the season with a four-game homestand. As Larkin’s trade request remains, how will the fanbase receive the now-former captain? And how much of a distraction will the situation be as the season goes on?

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The 41-year-old Ovechkin signed a one-year deal to return to the Washington Capitals in July. At the end of last season, there was a question as to whether the nine-time Rocket Richard Trophy winner would retire. In April, he said he was “pretty sure” he hadn’t played his final game, but would use the time off to discuss his options with his family and also see how his body felt. He also added he wouldn’t return unless it was with the Capitals, the only NHL franchise he has known.

Ovechkin, who enters the season with an NHL-record 972 career goals, didn’t give any hints about his future when meeting with reporters for the first time during training camp.

After reaching the 30-goal mark for the 20th time in 21 NHL seasons in 2025-26, Ovechkin still has something left in his tank and won’t go away until it is empty.

Who wins the Stanley Cup?

It might be a year too early for the Montreal Canadiens, who will be an exciting watch this season. The Panthers, as long as health doesn’t affect them like last season, should rebound enough to come out of the East. In the Cup Final, they will meet the Western Conference powerhouse Avalanche, who will be battle-tested fighting through the always difficult Central Division.

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In the end, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and company will celebrate a second Stanley Cup in six seasons, beating the Panthers in six games.

NHL Awards picks

Hart Trophy: Macklin Celebrini, San Jose Sharks
Art Ross Trophy: Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
Rocket Richard Trophy: Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers
Norris Trophy: Quinn Hughes, Minnesota Wild
Vezina Trophy: Logan Thompson, Washington Capitals
Jack Adams Award: Martin St. Louis, Montreal Canadiens
Calder Trophy: Porter Martone, Philadelphia Flyers

Stanley Cup odds

Florida Panthers +650
Carolina Hurricanes +650
Colorado Avalanche +700
Edmonton Oilers +800
Vegas Golden Knights +850
Tampa Bay Lightning +1000
Minnesota Wild +1300
Dallas Stars +1400
Washington Capitals +1700
Montreal Canadiens +2200
Toronto Maple Leafs +2500
Anaheim Ducks +2800
Utah Mammoth +3000
New Jersey Devils +3000
Los Angeles Kings +3000
Buffalo Sabres +3000
San Jose Sharks +3500
Ottawa Senators +3500
Philadelphia Flyers +5000
Columbus Blue Jackets +6000
Pittsburgh Penguins +8000
New York Rangers +8000
Boston Bruins +10000
Winnipeg Jets +15000
New York Islanders +15000
|Detroit Red Wings +15000
St. Louis Blues +20000
Nashville Predators +20000
Chicago Blackhawks +25000
Seattle Kraken +40000
Vancouver Canucks +100000
Calgary Flames +1000000