Oddsmakers have soured on Detroit’s rebuild, casting the historic franchise as a bottom-dweller despite years of roster turnover. Early betting lines signal a massive gap between the struggling Red Wings and their Atlantic Division rivals.
The Carolina Hurricanes are nearing the end of their summer with the Stanley Cup as attention now shifts to upcoming 2026-27 season, with sportsbooks already posting early odds.
As is always the case with markets this far out, some numbers track with expectations while others are bound to raise eyebrows around the league. This time, it's the Detroit Red Wings drawing much of the skepticism.
Detroit enters the summer with some of the least favorable odds in the entire Eastern Conference, a discouraging sign for a franchise that has been pushing to climb back into contention after a decade on the outside of the playoff picture.
The Red Wings are listed at +15000 to win the Stanley Cup, tied with the Winnipeg Jets for the 25th-best odds in the league, a number that places them well outside the group of teams sportsbooks view as legitimate contenders.
That skepticism only deepens in the conference market, where Detroit carries the worst listed odds of any team in the East to win the Eastern Conference at +6000, a stark placement for a team that has spent the past several offseasons trying to convince fans a corner has been turned.
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The Atlantic Division numbers tell a similar story as the Red Wings sit at +3500 to win the division, tied with the Boston Bruins for the worst odds in the group, and are tied again with Boston at +625 for the worst odds to finish in the top three.
For a division that includes plenty of established playoff teams and rising contenders, that placement suggests oddsmakers see a real gap between Detroit and the rest of the Atlantic field heading into next season.
There is at least one line that offers a nod to hockey's old guard, one where Detroit's Original Six status works in its favor collectively. The market pricing an Original Six team to win the Stanley Cup sits at +900, a reminder that even with the Red Wings' individual odds pointing toward another difficult season, the weight of the league's oldest franchises still counts for something in the eyes of oddsmakers.
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