How Futures Odds for Canada's NHL Teams Are Changing

Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers are rolling along, winning five straight games to take the division lead back. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are averaging two points per contest. Stuart Skinner and Jack Campbell are holding down the fort in goal. Evander Kane scored three goals on Tuesday night.

Edmonton should have a fun, high-paced contest against New Jersey tomorrow night. It figures to be a challenging week for the Oilers. They entertain Dallas this weekend, then travel East to play Washington, Carolina, Tampa Bay, and Florida.

Calgary Flames 

Calgary drops back a little after consecutive one-goal losses to the Edmonton Oilers and Seattle Kraken this week. The Flames will be tested as Calgary plays New Jersey twice, the Boston Bruins, and the New York Islanders. Nashville, tomorrow night, might be a bit of a breather. Might.

For those wondering, Calgary has slid back in NHL Futures a bit to 11.38, according to Sports Interaction. Toronto is second among Canadian teams at 12.24, with Edmonton catching up at 13.24.

The early ups and downs of the NHL season figured to get Calgary at some point. This is one of their most challenging stretches. 

Winnipeg Jets

Despite some confounding play, Scott Arniel has Winnipeg at 5-3-1, slightly above expectations. Rick Bowness expects to return to coaching fully as soon as this week.

Winnipeg’s goal differential is +1 and was expected to be around zero for the early portion of the season. Nik Ehlers being out has created a drop offensively. How long can Connor Hellebuyck keep playing as he has? Hellebuyck stopped more than 45 shots on Monday against Vegas and has stood on his head far too often. The offense needs to step up.

Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs must like the movie “Groundhog Day.” The Maple Leafs exit October around .500 at 4-4-2. The bigger problem is management and coaching concerns. Pundits are calling out players. The offense is not executing.

Ontario sports betting players are worried as Toronto’s numbers have already moved from 9.37 to 12.24 in the first month. Even betting money is going away from the Maple Leafs, who will be favored for the 10th time in 11 games this season against Philadelphia. Toronto has covered the Puckline just once.

Montreal Canadiens

Montreal is a young team treading water in the hockey world. At 5-5, the Canadiens exceed what was projected for them. They do lose a lot of their games by two or more goals. Last night was no exception, as they were blanked by the Minnesota Wild (3-0).

Fans have to be patient with Montreal. So far, they seem to be complying. For the most part, the team is fun and learning together. 

Ottawa Senators

Ottawa's 2022-23 season has been a bit of a roller coaster. They lost two to open the season, won four straight games, and now have dropped three in a row. At 4-5, the Senators are not dull, but injuries to Josh Norris and Artem Zub have made an impact. 

Losses to Florida, Tampa Bay, and Minnesota have dampened some enthusiasm, but Ottawa has time to recover. 

Vancouver Canucks

Bruce Boudreau and the Vancouver Canucks enjoyed a better week. They went 2-1 with wins against Seattle and a highlight win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. That was followed by a 5-2 loss last night at home against New Jersey. There are still plenty of concerns, and the defense is still bad. However, Vancouver might have finally stabilized somewhat.

Vancouver will be home to Anaheim and Nashville before heading to Eastern Canada for a three-game road trip later next week. 

As always, we keep on moving. Do not forget “Coaches Hot Seat” column comes out again this Friday. Thanks for reading.