Way-Too-Early Rankings for the Top 10 2027 Stanley Cup Contenders
The Carolina Hurricanes have lifted the 2026 Stanley Cup. The Toronto Maple Leafs (and Justin Bieber) have selected Gavin McKenna No. 1 overall in the 2026 NHL draft. The Ducks have matched the Flyers' gutsy offer sheet for Leo Carlsson, making him the highest-paid player in the league.
We have reached the quietest part of the hockey year. Plenty of teams still have big questions to answer before the first puck drop of 2026-27: Who's the next Red Wings GM, and will he trade Dylan Larkin before the start of the season? Will Connor Hellebuyck stay in Winnipeg? Can the Stars and Jason Robertson find peace?
For the most part, though, teams have made their big offseason moves by now. Why not take our first crack at a way-too-early 2027 Stanley Cup contender ranking?
10-6: Sabres, Canadiens, Capitals, Stars, and Wild
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Honorable mention: Tampa Bay Lightning: We've been saying this for years, but it truly might be time for this Lightning core to make one last push. Thirty-three-year-old Nikita Kucherov is coming off a Hart Trophy season, 31-year-old Andrei Vasilevskiy is coming off a Vezina Trophy season, and while these players showed how much they've still got it last season, time is running out.
Will Victor Hedman's return and the John Carlson acquisition boost the defense? Are prime-ish Jake Guentzel and Brayden Point enough to energize the aging -- but somehow still elite-level core, or is this the year we see true regression?
10. Buffalo Sabres: The question of the offseason is the move that could take the Sabres to contender status: Will they end up winning the Connor Hellebuyck sweepstakes, if there even is a Hellebuyck sweepstakes?
If they do, much of the anxiety around their offseason losses (Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram) goes away. If they don't, they've still got some solid bones to work with here as they look to make the playoffs for a second straight season. The young, promising players on the team took big steps and gained experience last year, so even though the Sabres haven't yet made some huge external swing this offseason, they're going to improve internally. We'll see how far that will get them.
9. Montreal Canadiens: Even if Montreal isn't right there yet, you've gotta love the direction this team is headed. The core is entering its prime, Nick Suzuki has only gotten better with more leadership and responsibilities, and the fast-paced play combined with high-end talent has made for electric playoff hockey.
This team has gone from rebuilding to the youngest team in the conference finals in three seasons, and it only seems to be up from here as Lane Hutson emerges as a top NHL defenseman.
8. Washington Capitals: The Capitals missed the playoffs last year, sure, but they had the same point total as the Vegas Golden Knights, who went all the way to the Cup Final. Go figure.
The Capitals had bad luck beyond residing in the 2025-26 Eastern Conference; they dealt with injuries to crucial players at the worst times, plus Alex Ovechkin had some slumps. Ovechkin is back for at least one more season to correct that, though, and management acted accordingly.
Washington has been a big winner this offseason, snagging Alex Tuch and Jordan Kyrou for an attempt to win the Cup one more time with Ovechkin.
The Caps are a great blend of veterans, primes, and up-and-comers, and Logan Thompson in net tops it all off. They'll be back this season.
7. Dallas Stars: It's hard to be too enthusiastic about the Stars after years of blown opportunities, and now some off-season drama regarding star forward Jason Robertson.
The Stars made three Western Conference Finals in a row before a first-round exit to the Wild last season, so their stock has fallen from that top five tier of contenders. Still, they've got the bones of a contender headed into next season and getting Robertson signed for the 2026-27 season will be a relief for now.
6. Minnesota Wild: Speaking of the gauntlet that is the Central, the Wild prevailed over the Stars in that raucous first-round showdown. They've got Kirill Kaprizov locked down, and they've still got Quinn Hughes under contract.
Now is the time for the Wild to acquire a Dylan Larkin-sized second-line center and go all-in. GM Bill Guerin seems up to the task of doing so.
5. Colorado Avalanche
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Vegas' sweep of Colorado in the Western Conference Final was so shocking because the Avalanche had been so dominant in the regular season and through the first two rounds of the playoffs.
Given the lack of prospects and draft capital the Avalanche have, how close they were last season before falling apart, and a core led by Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar in their prime, this is the time to follow up the Presidents' Trophy season with a Cup win.
Is this Avalanche team capable of that headed into next season? The Avs are coming off an incredible year for the goaltending tandem of Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood, so the pressure is on for a strong follow-up. The top-six forwards were also very productive and consistent, so expectations are high all around. Adding Jaden Schwartz and Brett Kulak at reasonable prices will help pick up some slack.
4. Vegas Golden Knights
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Look, knowing the Golden Knights, they could make an Earth-shattering move next week and climb a few spots in these way-too-early rankings. But they've been quieter than usual this off-season as their ever-present cap space worries appear to be catching up to them.
They had to part ways with top-scorer Pavel Dorofeyev as he signed with the Rangers, which is obviously a huge blow. They did manage to extend Rasmus Andersson to a seven-year contract with an $8.5 million AAV. While this could age well as the cap keeps rising, he struggled in the playoffs in several pivotal moments, and his game hasn't really stabilized since becoming a Golden Knight.
Then there's the goaltending situation: Carter Hart was good enough through much of Vegas' playoff run, but he fell apart in a wild Stanley Cup Final. It's hard to have full confidence in Hart after that.
Could the Golden Knights be gearing up to trade Dylan Larkin or Connor Hellebuyck? Either of those players addresses the aforementioned issues. We'll have to wait and see, but until then, the Golden Knights haven't improved this offseason.
3. Edmonton Oilers
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Connor McDavid's infamous two-year bridge deal officially kicks in at the start of the upcoming season, and the Oilers have acted with the appropriate urgency this offseason.
GM Stan Bowman was able to get rid of Darnell Nurse's contract without retaining salary and made some necessary re-signings. Most importantly, they finally addressed their subpar goaltending with the addition of Cup-winner Freddie Andersen on a one-year deal, and added up-and-comer Devon Levi for insurance. The one-year deal here is ideal, since they can pivot in year two of McDavid's contract if Andersen doesn't pan out.
The Oilers may have gained some perspective and urgency after their first-round exit to the Ducks last playoffs. Like the Panthers, they were exhausted coming off of two trips to the Cup Final, even if they have less to show for it. They should be similarly refreshed after a shorter playoff run, with a Cup-winning veteran goaltender now in the fold.
Edmonton is still weaker than most Cup winners in the past five years in the forward depth department. Will Bowman be able to add some more talent to round things out at the deadline now that some pricey contracts have been shed? Will a super-focused year from McDavid and Leon Draisaitl be enough to will the team to victory despite a weaker bottom six? Will Mike Babcock behind the bench help or hurt?
2. Carolina Hurricanes
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The Hurricanes had been knocking at the door of the Cup for the better part of a decade, and they finally dominated their way to the end goal last season. Now that the monkey is off their back, they are in a prime position to go back-to-back.
The core is both experienced and young: Sebastian Aho is just 28, Andrei Svechnikov is 26, and Nikolaj Ehlers is the only forward in their top six in his 30s. Seth Jarvis, Logan Stankoven, and Jackson Blake are 24, 23, and 22. Each of these players is already under contract beyond next season. The defense is pretty much set, too, save for 24-year-old RFA Alexander Nikishin, whom the Hurricanes are reportedly shopping but haven't yet let go of.
The Hurricanes did part ways with goaltender Freddie Andersen, who put up historically strong numbers through the rounds leading up to the Cup Final before tweaking his knee in Game 2 of the SCF, so goaltending becomes the question headed into the season.
Has Brandon Bussi earned the starting role after coming in and finishing off the job in net for the Hurricanes Cup win? Will Pyotr Kochetkov have that breakout season we've been anticipating for a few years now? Will the team be able to pivot if Bussi regresses and/or Kochetkov isn't the answer?
If the Hurricanes can figure out what they're working with in net and adjust accordingly, they've got a solid chance of going back-to-back.
1. Florida Panthers
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It's not every day -- in fact, it's not at all often -- you see a team go from missing the playoffs to winning the Stanley Cup in one season. But these Panthers aren't your typical hockey team.
After winning back-to-back Cups that took loads of travel, guts, and seven games in both Finals against the Oilers, the Panthers sustained a ridiculous (and understandable) amount of wear-and-tear. First-line center and arguably most important player Aleksander Barkov's season ended before it even started, as he suffered a torn ACL and MCL in his right knee during his very first official practice of training camp. Matthew Tkachuk had been falling apart and patching himself together every other month throughout 2024-25 and ultimately missed the entire first half of 2025-26. Seth Jones missed more than 30 games; Anton Lundell, Brad Marchand, and virtually half of the roster also suffered from various injuries throughout the season.
In this context, and knowing most of the core was locked up and set to return for 2026-27, it made sense that the Panthers sort of let themselves fall out of the playoff race in 2025-26 to rest and rehab in anticipation of a healthier 2026-27. Their strategy under head coach Paul Maurice has revolved around knowing when to put their feet on and off the gas, and it was clear last season just wasn't the year, so they accepted that fate.
Headed into next season, players are expected back healed, rested, and hungry to compete for a third Cup in four seasons. The addition of Brady Tkachuk this offseason adds more snarl and talent to an already menacing top-nine, and new goaltender Jacob Markstrom's got some interesting upside.
Considering the returning cast, the fresh legs, the off-season additions, and the fact that this roster isn't getting any younger, 2026-27 is going to be Florida's best opportunity to go for that third Stanley Cup with this core.
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