The NHL is getting a longer regular season in 2026-27.
For the first time since 1993-94, every team will play 84 games instead of 82. The two extra games are both divisional matchups, giving each club four games — two home and two away — against all seven teams in its division. The full league schedule therefore grows to a record 1,344 games.
Extra divisional games can affect season points totals, division futures and player markets, while creating two more high-leverage matchups against the teams each club is directly competing with for playoff position.
The new season starts September 29, when defending Stanley Cup champion Carolina hosts Florida. With the Panthers back among the futures favorites, Colorado coming off a 121-point regular season and Vegas returning from a trip to the Stanley Cup Final, the 2026-27 outright market starts with several genuine contenders.
Contents
What changes with the NHL’s new 84-game schedule?
Each team now plays:
| Opponent type | Games |
| Divisional opponents | 28 |
| Same conference, other division | 24 |
| Opposite conference | 32 |
| Total | 84 |
The biggest difference is within the division. Teams now play every divisional opponent four times, removing the uneven setup where some rivals met three times and others four.
For futures bettors, that makes division strength slightly more influential. A team in a weaker division receives two additional games against familiar opponents it may already match up well against. A contender in a deep division gets two extra games where points are harder to bank and where its nearest rivals can take points directly from it.
The maximum possible regular-season points total also increases from 164 to 168.
2027 Stanley Cup odds: Who are the favorites?
Florida enters September as the market favorite after missing the 2026 playoffs. The Panthers added Brady Tkachuk to a core that won the Stanley Cup in 2024 and 2025, while getting a full offseason to recover after three straight trips to the Final.
Colorado and Carolina sit close behind. The Avalanche went 55-16-11 last season to win the Presidents’ Trophy before reaching the Western Conference Final. Carolina went 53-22-7, won the Metropolitan Division and then finished the postseason 16-3 to claim its second Stanley Cup.
Indicative early-September Stanley Cup prices:
| Team | Stanley Cup odds |
| Florida Panthers | +650 |
| Colorado Avalanche | +700 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | +750 |
| Edmonton Oilers | +900 |
| Vegas Golden Knights | +900 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | +1200 |
| Minnesota Wild | +1400 |
| Dallas Stars | +1700 |
| Washington Capitals | +1700 |
These prices reflect the wider market in early September and will move throughout preseason and the regular season. Check Cloudbet for the latest NHL outright odds before betting.
Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina deserves to remain near the top of the market. Most of the championship roster returns, and Rod Brind’Amour’s team has now finished first in the Metropolitan Division three times in five seasons.
The major question is in goal after Frederik Andersen left for Edmonton. Carolina’s structure should keep it among the league’s strongest regular-season teams, but replacing Andersen’s 13-2 playoff run is a meaningful change for a defending champion.
Florida Panthers
Florida may offer the highest ceiling in the East. Injuries and fatigue helped derail the Panthers in 2025-26, but they have since added Brady Tkachuk alongside Matthew Tkachuk, Aleksander Barkov, and Sam Reinhart.
There is change in net after Sergei Bobrovsky’s departure, with Jacob Markstrom taking over, but a healthier and deeper Florida roster has enough upside to justify favorite status.
Colorado Avalanche
Colorado enters after the NHL’s best 2025-26 regular-season record. Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar still give the Avalanche elite top-end talent, while the offseason brought younger depth around the established core.
At around +700, there is little sleeper value in Colorado, but the Avs remain one of the clearest teams to beat across an 84-game schedule.
NHL division picks for 2026-27
Atlantic Division pick: Florida Panthers
Tampa Bay remains a major threat after another excellent regular season, and Montreal is improving quickly. Still, Florida gets the pick.
The Panthers have added Brady Tkachuk to a championship-level core and should enter the season far healthier than they did last year. If the new goaltending setup holds, Florida has the deepest overall roster in the division.
Pick: Florida Panthers
Metropolitan Division pick: Carolina Hurricanes
Washington strengthened its roster with Alex Tuch, Jordan Kyrou, and Boone Jenner, making the Capitals an interesting alternative at a higher price.
Carolina remains the safer pick. The Hurricanes won 53 games last season, led the division and kept most of the roster that went 16-3 in the playoffs.
Pick: Carolina Hurricanes
Central Division pick: Colorado Avalanche
Minnesota and Dallas both have enough quality to push Colorado, but the Avalanche begin as the clear benchmark.
Colorado finished nine points ahead of Dallas last season and had a +99 goal differential. A refreshed supporting cast around MacKinnon, Makar and the rest of the core gives the Presidents’ Trophy winners a strong chance to repeat as Central champions.
Pick: Colorado Avalanche
Pacific Division pick: Vegas Golden Knights
Edmonton is the obvious alternative, especially after adding Andersen in goal. But Vegas gets a narrow edge.
The Golden Knights reached the 2026 Stanley Cup Final and return Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner, Mark Stone, Tomas Hertl and most of their defensive core. Losing 37-goal scorer Pavel Dorofeyev hurts, and Ryan Craig takes over as head coach, but Vegas still has the depth to win a tight Pacific race.
Pick: Vegas Golden Knights
What do two extra games change for NHL betting markets?
The most obvious adjustment is season points.
An 82-game team playing at a 100-point pace would project to roughly 102.4 points over 84 games if its performance level stayed identical. A 110-point pace becomes about 112.7. Bettors should therefore be careful when comparing new team totals with familiar historical benchmarks.
The same principle applies to player goals and points. Two extra games add roughly 2.4% more schedule opportunity, although injuries, ice time, and usage remain far more important than simply multiplying an old projection by 84/82.
Divisional strength also becomes a slightly bigger input. Both added games come against divisional opponents, so teams in strong divisions have more difficult additions to their schedule than teams with softer local competition.
For individual game totals, the impact is less automatic. Familiarity can lead to tighter tactical games, while rivalry matchups can also produce more penalties and special-teams chances. Rather than assuming the extra divisional games favor overs or unders, bettors should track each team’s divisional scoring, goaltending, and special-teams performance once the season begins.
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The 84-game era begins September 29. With two additional divisional games for every team and a tightly packed group of Stanley Cup contenders, the 2026-27 NHL season gives bettors more hockey — and a slightly different futures market to price.
