But which teams are doing better than expected? And which teams are not meeting expectations? We want to look at those questions, looking at how sportsbooks have changed their perceptions of certain NHL teams since the season began in mid-January.

It’s important to note, however, that three teams – Lightning, Avalanche and Golden Knights – were considered betting favorites at the start of the season, and they remain in that position today. They have met the expectations of sportsbooks set out at the start of the season, albeit they may not have met the expectations of every fan. But others have either moved up the pecking order with sportsbooks, or fallen away considerably.

Below we pick out the most interesting market movers, with the latest odds supplied by 888 sports betting online. Please note that we are looking at market movers, i.e., those teams whose odds have changed dramatically, and not claiming that any team will go on to win the Stanley Cup Finals.

1. New York Islanders

The surprise team of the season so far? The Islanders currently sit atop the Eastern Division and, slowly but surely, people are starting to consider them serious contenders. There is a long way to go yet, but sportsbooks have more than halved the Islanders’ odds for the Stanley Cup. At the time of writing, they are quoted as a +1300 chance. At the start of the season, those odds were around +2800.

2. Carolina Hurricanes

Currently sitting on odds of +750, the Hurricanes have also seen their price slashed by major bookmakers – down from +1700 at the start of the season. They face a tough fight to top the Central Division, with stiff competition from the Panthers (see below) and Lightning, but a third consecutive appearance in the Playoffs after years in the wilderness beckons. A team growing in stature as the season progresses.

3. Florida Panthers

The Panthers are the biggest movers on this list so far, moving from +4800 preseason to +1600 today. A seventh Playoff appearance in franchise history is on the cards, but can they do more in 2021?

4. Winnipeg Jets

The Jets won’t be everyone’s pick to the first team in a generation to bring the Stanley Cup back to Canada, but a solid season has moved their odds from +4800 to a very respectable +1800.

5. Chicago Blackhawks

The Blackhawks started the season as an outside chance for going deep into the Playoffs, and that remains the case today. However, their movement from +6000 on January 12th to +3300 today shows that they are having a better-than-expected season.

6. Dallas Stars

And finishing now with a team moving in the wrong direction. The Stars have played fewer games than any other team in the NHL (21 at the time of writing), so there might be a consensus that they still have the time to climb the Central Division. However, form has simply not been good enough so far to consider them contenders. As such, sportsbooks have more than doubled their odds from the start of the season, from +2200 to +4800.