Alberta sportsbooks<\/a>, hoping to gauge what local markets make of their chances.<\/p>\nSo what do these platforms make of each team\u2019s chances of winning the Pacific? Here\u2019s a look at each team and what to expect heading into the new season.<\/p>\n
Oilers to Rival Knights for Pacific Title<\/h2>\n
The race for the title is once again expected to come down to one of two teams, after the Oilers and Golden Knights finished in the top two last season. The Oilers have been especially active in recent weeks, letting six players leave but bringing in the likes of defenceman Ryan Shea from Pittsburgh, Devon Levi from Buffalo, and Frederik Andersen from Carolina.<\/p>\n
They are in win-now mode, and new coach Mike Babcock could well be pivotal to success. A 2008 Stanley Cup champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist, Edmonton is banking on the former Anaheim and Detroit coach being able to make an immediate impact next year.<\/p>\n
Although the Oilers are considered slight favourites by many with general odds of +190, Babcock will need to contend with a Vegas team that is coming off a run to the Stanley Cup Final. Since new head coach Ryan Craig arrived at the helm in June, the Golden Knights have signed defenceman Jeremy Lauzon to a six-year deal, extended Rasmus Andersson through until the 2032\/33 season, while adding further names in free agency.<\/p>\n
Trading leading goalscorer Pavel Dorofeyev to the Rangers does leave some questions open heading into the new season. But sportsbooks still believe Vegas has enough tools to contend in the Pacific next year, pricing the Golden Knights at +200 to win the division. With so little to separate them and the Oilers, fans could be set for another nail-biting finish.<\/p>\n
Ducks, Kings, and Sharks to Challenge for Playoff Spot<\/h3>\n
Some Ducks fans were shocked when they traded young stars Mason McTavish and Olen Zellweger, and there are some questions about the team\u2019s long-term future. Anaheim did retain Leo Carlsson, who managed 67 points in 70 games last season, but it will take more than the franchise centre to keep them in the hunt for success, highlighted by their NHL Pacific Division odds of +650.<\/p>\n
Forecast as a playoff team in 2025, the Kings will have the same target heading into next season. Los Angeles has re-signed some key pieces including Brandt Clarke while adding further depth pieces like Mats Zuccarello. But sportsbooks only have them at +550 to win the Pacific, so it might not hurt to add some more star power between now and game one.<\/p>\n
San Jose, meanwhile, could have one eye on making a playoff charge. Drafting a ready-made NHLer in the form of Ivar Stenberg could have a big impact on the team\u2019s success this year, particularly if he can gel with Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith, and other forwards. After they finished just four points shy of LA in 2025\/26, the Sharks could be in a good place to end their postseason drought, which is why sportsbooks have them at +750 currently.<\/p>\n
Kraken, Flames, and Canucks All Seen as Big Longshots<\/h3>\n
Although Seattle has not lost key parts of its roster in the off-season so far, they have been relatively quiet. They signed Curtis Douglas and Mackie Samoskevich to bolster their forward options, but with the team finishing 11 points behind the Kings in last year\u2019s playoff race, sportsbooks believe that they are huge longshots if nothing changes.<\/p>\n
The Kraken\u2019s odds of +4500 still place them way ahead of both Calgary and Vancouver, neither of whom is expected to lose their status as the Pacific\u2019s basement dwellers. Both have attempted to bolster their rosters, with the Flames bringing in defencemen \u0160imon Nemec and Jake Middleton, while the Canucks acquired Brendan Gallagher from Montreal. But as each was so off the pace in 2025\/26 and in rebuilding phases, it\u2019s hardly surprising to see their odds of +8000 and +10,000.<\/p>\n
Main Photo Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The 2026 NHL Entry Draft is now in the rearview mirror, meaning that attention for most franchises is on off-season trades, free agency, and getting rosters in shape for when the regular season kicks off in September. Despite there being months to go until players return to the ice, predictions are already flying in regarding […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4222,"featured_media":468667,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8154,4547],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-493877","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-betting","category-hockey"],"modified_by":"Levi Pike, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493877","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4222"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=493877"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493877\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":493910,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493877\/revisions\/493910"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/468667"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=493877"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=493877"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=493877"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}