With the fervour of another NHL season on the horizon, battle lines are being drawn, and the public’s expectations of each team are being set. Although not everything will go to plan, a decent barometer for these collective expectations are measured by sportsbooks, acting as a ranking of sorts for how each NHL team will fare in the 2023–24 season. With that in mind let’s look at some of the odds on FanDuel to take stock of the expectations on the Edmonton Oilers, as well as the lay of the land across the NHL.
While the odds for teams winning the Stanley Cup and the Presidents’ Trophy are mostly the same, there are a few key differences that might give us insight towards how certain teams are perceived. Naturally, the Oilers are represented well, fifth most likely to win each award. In general, the top teams are more likely to win the Presidents’ Trophy than the Stanley Cup, while the odds for the Cup present a bit more parity.
Stanley Cup and Presidents Trophy odds
| Team | Stanley Cup Odds | Presidents’ Trophy Odds |
| Colorado Avalanche | +850 | +700 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | +950 | +750 |
| New Jersey Devils | +1100 | +900 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | +1100 | +900 |
| Edmonton Oilers | +1100 | +950 |
| Vegas Golden Knights | +1300 | +1000 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | +1400 | +1500 |
| Boston Bruins | +1500 | +1600 |
| Dallas Stars | +1600 | +1100 |
| Florida Panthers | +2000 | +2100 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | +2000 | +2300 |
| New York Rangers | +2000 | +1700 |
| Los Angeles Kings | +2000 | +1700 |
It is notable that the Oilers are tied for third with the New Jersey Devils and the Toronto Maple Leafs for the Stanley Cup, while being behind both of those teams in Presidents’ Trophy odds. The Devils are stocked with young talent and are one of the darlings of the offseason after their breakout year in 2022–23. The Leafs have been a dominant regular season team for longer than the Oilers have, but there does not seem to be any rhyme or reason to their relatively elevated Presidents’ Trophy odds other than East coast bias.
Perhaps there might be a pattern to discern, but the Dallas Stars have the biggest difference in odds as being more likely to win the Presidents’ Trophy than the Stanley Cup, while the Pittsburgh Penguins are the opposite, much more likely to win the Stanley Cup than the Presidents’ Trophy.
Pacific Division odds
| Team | Pacific Division Odds |
| Edmonton Oilers | +200 |
| Vegas Golden Knights | +220 |
| Los Angeles Kings | +370 |
| Calgary Flames | +800 |
| Seattle Kraken | +1100 |
| Vancouver Canucks | +1400 |
| Anahiem Ducks | +1700 |
| San Jose Sharks | +2100 |
By a slim margin, the Oilers are the favourites to win the Pacific Division over the Vegas Golden Knights, the reigning Pacific Division and Stanley Cup champions. Once again, betters are not exactly getting a deal on the Oilers, as the Books expect a great deal from the Oilers.
Most curious, perhaps, is the Seattle Kraken rated well under their results from last season. Through the first two seasons the Kraken have underperformed, in 2021–22, and overperformed, in 2022–23, the expectations that the public has placed on them. This line suggests that the Kraken are the fourth best team in the Pacific Division, and by a wide margin at that.
For some reason, the Kraken appear to be undervalued here, and Oilers fans should expect that at least four other teams in the Pacific Division should be in playoff contention at least. The Calgary Flames are trying to find themselves, but lost an astounding number of overtime and shootout games, missing the playoffs by the slimes of margins. The Vancouver Canucks, meanwhile, are a mercurial team with excellent top end talent and an inelegant supporting cast. While the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks might not be expected to make the playoffs, the Pacific does boast six teams worth considering for playoff spots.
Cup odds by division
| Division | Cup Odds |
| Atlantic | +230 |
| Central | +250 |
| Metropolitan | +280 |
| Pacific | +300 |
Despite the number of teams in the division earnestly expecting a playoff push, the Pacific Division is still seen as the runt of the NHL’s four divisions, by Cup odds. The Oilers expected results aside, with the reigning Stanley Cup champions in tow this narrative about the Pacific Division being weak is outdated.
There are, of course, a number of great teams around the league, but with the number of rebuilders moving up the ranks and more soon to follow, we should expect the Pacific Division to reassert itself in the eyes of these larger scope conversations.
With the Western Conference having won the last two Stanley Cups, and veteran powers in the East clamouring to hang onto their windows, Oilers fans should expect a different narrative in the near future. On top of the true contenders, the Golden Knights and the Oilers, and the mercurial Canadian teams the Flames and Canucks, the Pacific Division is home to a Kraken team on the upswing, as well as one of the NHL’s more intriguing builds, the Los Angeles Kings.
Oilers team points: 104.5
With the NHL’s point system, a single standings point being awarded to teams that lose extra time regular season games, the Oilers totals points line represents a hesitancy towards a second straight 50-win season. Under Coach Jay Woodcroft, and with a pair of MVP players in their primes, the Oilers are operating at a much greater rate than this number would suggest, or about 46 to 49 wins.
Still, a lot can go wrong over the course of an NHL season, and as fans we should not take the heights that the Oilers have reached of late for granted. The Oilers finished with 109 points in 2022–23, and 104 in 2021—22. No team is too perfect to weather every storm. Every win is earned by some equation of effort, skill, and luck. In any case, the Oilers are being given their share of respect as one of the NHL’s true contending teams.
Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire
