The Dallas Stars, Carolina Hurricanes and Edmonton Oilers are the favorites to win the Stanley Cup this season, but the field is still wide open, according to preseason predictions by NHL.com staff writers and editors.
Of the 16 staff members who made their picks, four picked the Stars, four picked the Hurricanes and three picked the Oilers to win it all. Two picked the Colorado Avalanche to hoist the Cup for the second time in three seasons, while the Vegas Golden Knights, the 2023 champs, were chosen by one voter to repeat.
The New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs were each chosen by one staff member to win the Cup.
As for the winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy as most valuable player of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Oilers center Connor McDavid got three votes, while Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen and Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov got two each.
The NHL season begins on Tuesday with a tripleheader on ESPN, ESPN+, SN and TVAS. The Tampa Bay Lightning host the Nashville Predators in the first game of the season (5:30 p.m. ET), then Connor Bedard, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, leads the Chicago Blackhawks into Pittsburgh to face the Sidney Crosby and the Penguins (8 p.m. ET). The night wraps up with the Vegas Golden Knights raising their Stanley Cup banner before hosting the Seattle Kraken (10:30 p.m. ET).
Here is how the writers and editors picked:
Amalie Benjamin, staff writer
Atlantic Division
1: Toronto Maple Leafs | 2: Boston Bruins | 3: Florida Panthers
Metropolitan Division
1: Carolina Hurricanes | 2: New Jersey Devils | 3: New York Rangers
Eastern Conference wild cards
1: Pittsburgh Penguins | 2: Tampa Bay Lightning
Central Division
1: Colorado Avalanche | 2: Dallas Stars | 3: Minnesota Wild
Pacific Division
1: Vegas Golden Knights | 2: Edmonton Oilers | 3: Los Angeles Kings
Western Conference wild cards
1: Calgary Flames | 2: Seattle Kraken
Conference champions
East: Carolina Hurricanes
West: Colorado Avalanche
Stanley Cup champion: Carolina Hurricanes
Conn Smythe Trophy winner: Sebastian Aho, Carolina Hurricanes
Brian Compton, managing editor
Atlantic Division
1: Toronto Maple Leafs | 2: Florida Panthers | 3: Buffalo Sabres
Metropolitan Division
1: New Jersey Devils | 2: Carolina Hurricanes | 3: New York Rangers
Eastern Conference wild cards
1: Boston Bruins | 2: Pittsburgh Penguins
Central Division
1: Dallas Stars | 2: Colorado Avalanche | 3: Minnesota Wild
Pacific Division
1: Edmonton Oilers | 2: Vegas Golden Knights | 3: Seattle Kraken
Western Conference wild cards
1: Los Angeles Kings | 2: Vancouver Canucks
Conference champions
East: Carolina Hurricanes
West: Colorado Avalanche
Stanley Cup champion: Carolina Hurricanes
Conn Smythe Trophy winner: Andrei Svechnikov, Carolina Hurricanes
