Metropolitan Division Odds 2026-27: Carolina Defends Title

No 2026-27 Metropolitan Division odds were posted in ESPN’s NHL futures feed on 24 September 2026, so this page names no price yet. The Carolina Hurricanes go in as the holders twice over: they won the Metropolitan in 2025-26 with 113 points, then won the 2026 Stanley Cup.

Nobody else in the division was close. Carolina finished 15 points clear of Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, who tied for second on 98.

2025-26 Metropolitan Division final standings

Team	Record	Points	Goals for	Goals against	Difference
Carolina Hurricanes	53-22-7	113	296	240	+56
Pittsburgh Penguins	41-25-16	98	293	268	+25
Philadelphia Flyers	43-27-12	98	250	243	+7
Washington Capitals	43-30-9	95	263	244	+19
Columbus Blue Jackets	40-30-12	92	253	253	0
New York Islanders	43-34-5	91	233	241	-8
New Jersey Devils	42-37-3	87	230	254	-24
New York Rangers	34-39-9	77	238	250	-12

Carolina had the best record in the Eastern Conference and scored the most goals in the division, 296. Pittsburgh was second on ESPN’s tiebreak order and scored 293, three fewer.

The bottom of the table was bunched. Washington, Columbus and the Islanders were separated by four points, and none of them made the playoffs. The Rangers finished last with 77.

How the Metropolitan teams did in the 2026 playoffs

Three Metropolitan teams made the playoffs. Philadelphia beat Pittsburgh 4-2 in the first round, and Carolina lost three games in all on the way to the Cup.

Series	Result
First round	Carolina Hurricanes beat Ottawa Senators 4-0
First round	Philadelphia Flyers beat Pittsburgh Penguins 4-2
Second round	Carolina Hurricanes beat Philadelphia Flyers 4-0
Conference final	Carolina Hurricanes beat Montreal Canadiens 4-1
Stanley Cup Final	Carolina Hurricanes beat Vegas Golden Knights 4-2

Carolina finished the playoffs 16-3. Philadelphia, which finished third in the division, won one more playoff series than Pittsburgh, which finished second on the same points.

Metropolitan Division opening games for 2026-27

Every Metropolitan team plays 84 games this season, and 28 of them are against the other seven teams in the division.

Team	First game (ET)
Carolina Hurricanes	Tue 29 Sep, home to Florida Panthers, 5 p.m.
New York Rangers	Tue 29 Sep, at Boston Bruins, 8 p.m.
Philadelphia Flyers	Wed 30 Sep, home to Pittsburgh Penguins, 7:30 p.m.
Pittsburgh Penguins	Wed 30 Sep, at Philadelphia Flyers, 7:30 p.m.
New York Islanders	Wed 30 Sep, at Toronto Maple Leafs, 7:30 p.m.
New Jersey Devils	Thu 1 Oct, home to Philadelphia Flyers, 7 p.m.
Columbus Blue Jackets	Thu 1 Oct, home to Buffalo Sabres, 7 p.m.
Washington Capitals	Fri 2 Oct, at Carolina Hurricanes, 7 p.m.

The champions open the whole league season, at 5 p.m. ET on 29 September in Raleigh. The first division game is the next night, Pittsburgh at Philadelphia, a rematch of last April’s first-round series, and Carolina plays two games against Seattle in Helsinki on 12 and 14 November.

How to read Metropolitan Division odds once they post

A price converts to a break-even chance. For plus money, divide 100 by the price plus 100: a team at +400 needs to win the division 20.0% of the time. For minus money, divide the price by the price plus 100: a favorite at -200 needs 66.7%.

A division bet is worth making only when you rate a team’s chance higher than its price does. Add up the eight teams’ break-even rates and the total will pass 100%, which is the book’s margin, so compare books before you take one.

More NHL futures and picks

The other three division races are on our Atlantic, Central and Pacific pages. League-wide markets are on the Stanley Cup odds page, the NHL conference odds page and the Presidents’ Trophy odds page.

Game-by-game calls are on the NHL predictions hub, nightly lines on the NHL scores and odds page, and team pages start with the Carolina Hurricanes. For paid NHL picks through the season, the membership trial is here.