After a brief hiatus and a quick preseason, the 2026-27 NHL season has arrived. Before the puck drops on opening night, we’re making some predictions.
If he likes this time, he ignores it as usual before, which is what it is. The NHL is adopting an 84-game regular season, which just means more hockey for the rest of us. It also means a long and arduous road to the Stanley Cup, ever so slightly more difficult.
So what is that journey like? The Carolina Hurricanes are looking to defend their title as defending champions, but they will have to contend with a deep Eastern Conference and some playoffs in the Western Conference. With that in mind, we began our expert predictions for the field in each playoff conference — and there were a few surprises — before making our final Stanley Cup picks.
We also called out the winners of each of our most important individual awards. Connor McDavid is looking for a fourth Hart Trophy, but he’s got some competition from the up-and-coming superstar in his division. The races for the Norris Trophy and the Vezina Trophy are pretty wide open, and unexpected candidates always emerge throughout the season.
It’s going to be a fun season in the NHL, so follow along with all of our coverage on CBS Sports. Let’s kick things off with a time forecast and predictions, which of course will be 100% accurate.
2026-27 NHL playoff predictions
Eastern Conference
Baumgartner: I don’t see many new faces entering the conference when it comes to the Eastern Conference playoffs. A healthy Florida Panthers side slot back to the top of the Atlantic, and a rejuvenated Washington Capitals side can make some noise in the Metropolitan. In addition, I have six 2026 playoff teams returning to the 2027 dance.
Western Conference
snow As much as I hate to go with preseason chalk — which rarely happens this way — you can’t deny the top dogs from the West. The Avalanche and Stars are the class of the Central Division, and the Golden Knights should beat the miserable Pacific Division to a pulp. The most interesting thing behind them is obviously the Cup of Contenders, and another outstanding leap from the Mammoth. I also think Macklin Celebrini will be successful in leading the Sharks to the playoffs in his third NHL season.
The biggest surprise team
Nivison — Columbus Blue Jackets: The Blue Jackets have been prone to playoffs in each of the last two seasons, and they look to get over the hump in 2026-27. There are still issues with Columbus. Can Adam Fantilli be a franchise player at center? Is the forward group as good as all the big ones in the competitive Eastern Conference? Still, I’m sure the Blue Jackets have a really strong blue line, led by Norris Trophy winner Zach Werenski, and goaltender Jet Greaves on track to become a Vezina Trophy candidate. Internal improvements from a young core will then get Columbus above the cut line.
Baumgartner — San Jose Sharks The Sharks narrowly missed out on the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, finishing just four points short of the second wild card. San Jose added some good veterans over the summer, but the biggest offseason move was selecting Ivar Stenberg with the No. 2nd pick in the Draft. Stenberg joins the youth movement in San Jose, which is spearheaded by new captain Macklin Celebrini, who broke the Sharks individual points record with 115 last season. The Sharks are a better team than they were a year ago, and with Celebrin entering his third season as a Hart Trophy contender, this team will not be against the fun.
The Stanley Cup final read
snow Yes, Mammoth, they have a brutal way out of the Central Division, but just close your eyes and imagine this scenario with me. Logan Cooley becomes a superstar center. Dylan Guenther reached 50 goals. Dmitry Simashev asserts himself in the top four of the championship. Anders Lee and Vincent Trocheck provide much-needed depth. Now open your eyes. Utah is your Western Conference champion.
Unfortunately for Mammoth, they run into a revived Panther team that now has Tkachuks double doors. We found out last season that all it takes to stop Florida is hoping all of its key players miss the season with an injury. The long offseason was perhaps a blessing in disguise as it allowed the Panthers to heal, and that’s bad news for everyone else. The structure before the crack will end some volatility we saw from Jacob Markstrom in New Jersey, and Florida wins its third Stanley Cup in four years.
Baumgartner: Before last season, the Carolina Hurricanes’ kryptonite was the Eastern Conference Finals. The Hurricanes were able to overcome their demons and win the East before finally taking home the franchise’s first Stanley Cup since 2006. In the West, the Dallas Stars ran into the same problem. After three straight seasons ending in the Western Conference Finals, the Stars were eliminated last season, falling to the Minnesota Wild in the first round. The Central Division will be up for grabs again, but I’m ready for Dallas to take the next step and reach the Stanley Cup Final.
While Dallas has continued to lack in recent years, the Panthers have done the opposite. The Panthers have made three consecutive Stanley Cup Final appearances, winning back-to-back Cups in 2023–24 and 2024–25. Last season, Florida’s three Jets efforts were halted on day one of practice after captain Aleksander Barkov went down with a non-contact injury, tearing both the ACL and MCL in his right knee. The offseason of healing Barkov, and the rest of the Panthers, the team began to rebuild in September for the first time in years. With almost the entire 2025 Stanley Cup winning core still on the team and the addition of Brady Tkachuk to the fold, Florida looks poised to win its third Stanley Cup in four seasons.
Awards
snow Celebrini should have won the Hart Trophy last season, but for some inexplicable reason, it wasn’t even the last. This year, Celebrini replicates that accomplishment and San Jose gets to the postseason to take home its first MVP award in 20 years. Hughes gets a run in his first season with the Wild, and Spencer Carberry gets his flowers to win the Metro Division after missing the playoffs last year.
Baumgartner: McDavid’s ability to take over the game was evident almost every time he took the ice last season. His 24 points (11 goals, 13 assists) in the final 14 games of the regular season — without Leon Draisaitl in the lineup — is one of the many reasons he’s No. I placed 1 on my Hart Trophy ballot. With the last two years left on his current contract, desperation may kick in in Edmonton to get the job that will lead to another MVP-caliber season. Barkov is healthy and a frontrunner to win his fourth Selke, and Dahlin will have another strong season to take home his first career Norris Trophy.