The Edmonton Oilers are not even the second or third best choice to win the Stanley Cup right now. Vegas has taken over to be the Western Conference favorite in the NHL. However, the Florida Panthers, despite several injuries, leads the way as the favorite to win a third straight Stanley Cup.
Instead of focusing on Stanley Cup and conference odds, why not go in a different direction or two? After all, it can get redundant to see the same futures over and over. I get it. Do we have some specials in mind? That answer would be a yes.
The 2025-2026 NHL season kicks off on October 7, 2025, with three games: Chicago Blackhawks vs. Florida Panthers, Pittsburgh Penguins vs. New York Rangers, and Colorado Avalanche vs. Los Angeles Kings. This year will get off with a bang.
Do check out the Vegas Stanley Cup odds for 2025-26. Now, let us examine some 2025-26 NHL Specials. These wagers are a little different. The table below will focus on most goals for the season numbers.
| NHL Season Special Bets |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team Goals | |||
| Tampa Bay | +600 | +550 | +550 |
| Edmonton | +600 | +575 | +600 |
| Dallas | +700 | +650 | +650 |
| Colorado | +700 | +800 | +800 |
| Florida | +1100 | +1200 | +1200 |
| Vegas | +1200 | +1200 | +1200 |
| Ovechkin's 900th goal against | |||
| Tampa Bay | +550 | +600 | +550 |
| Minnesota | +600 | +600 | +575 |
| Vancouver | +650 | +650 | +600 |
| Seattle | +750 | +750 | +750 |
| NY Rangers | +900 | +800 | +800 |
| NY Islanders | +900 | +800 | +800 |
NHL season specials lead off with most goals by a team. Instead of focusing on stage eliminations and that fun stuff, we went with goals. Hey, which squad is going to light the lamp the most times during the 2025-2026 season? This is not as easy as it looks. However, I do like the Edmonton Oilers for a few obvious reasons.
This season will be head coach Kris Knoblauch‘s first full season behind the Edmonton bench. He will have his star players, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, in the fold, but the team is expected to give top prospects Matthew Savoie and Isaac Howard every chance to make the top two forward lines. The thought process is that Edmonton is going to bounce back some goals wise.
The big concern for the Oilers is how much of an actual rise do we get? Edmonton scored 35 goals fewer compared to 2023-24 (294). Large reasons included drop-offs from Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid. McDavid has scored a combined 58 goals in the past two years (had 64 in 2022-23). He has four 40+ goal seasons on his resume. Edmonton may get a fifth this year.
The Oilers are a very dangerous team in the Western Conference, but with things so close, they are going to need to score a few more goals. Edmonton only ranked 11th on the power play in 2024-25 at 23.7%. This is a team that normally is around 30%. It is an area where a big uptick could tip the scales in their favor.
The Vegas Golden Knights won the Pacific Division for the fourth time last year, finishing the season with a record of 50-22-10. One of the more interesting things is that Vegas was second in the league on the power play last year. Guess what, the wealthy only got wealthier. 2025-26 NHL season specials are a bit surprised by the number above.
During the summer, the Golden Knights made the biggest splash in free agency, inking Mitch Marner on a sign-and-trade deal for the max allowable eight years and $96 million. Marner was the fifth leading scorer in the NHL last year with 102 points. Adding this to an already potent lineup is frightening. Vegas averaged 3.34 goals per game in 2024-25. Only Tampa Bay, Winnipeg, Washington, and Dallas were better.
Mitch Marner wants playoff success badly but he saw an opportunity to pad his stats. Let us be honest. Vegas is going to be a scary team to play against. Even with Alex Pietrangelo (career likely done), this team is built more towards offense when compared to previous seasons.
Vegas will still get overlooked here. Teams like Dallas and Colorado are going to get more headlines. However, do not be surprised if one sees a quick shift here once the NHL season starts in a few weeks. Needless to say, bettors should be warned.
Yes, NHL Season Specials next turn to Alex Ovechkin. As everyone knows, Ovechkin broke Wayne Gretzky’s goal-scoring record last season against the New York Islanders. However, a new milestone awaits. Barring something insanely unforeseen, Ovechkin will get his 900th goal and early in the 2025-26 season.
That is because Ovechkin stands at 897 goals. Now, he is battling a lower body injury in training camp. However, the expectation is the left winger will be plenty ready to go by the start of the regular season. There is still a couple of weeks after all. So, the question is not if, but when.
After winning the Metropolitan Division in 2024-25, Washington is expected to take a step back. However, the top line led by Dylan Strome and Ovechkin won’t as much. Expect them not to average 3.49 goals per game but they could come close.
Ovechkin’s last season in the NHL may be this one. He wants to go out with a bang. Expect him to get this one out of the way quickly (900 goals). The Islanders or Rangers should be runaway favorites here. He loves scoring against both teams. If Ovechkin pops one in against Boston, then 900 may come against either New York team. We chose the Islanders.
Before making any bets, check out the current NHL online Vegas odds. You definitely always be mindful of the latest Vegas betting site bonuses as well.
