Who are the inner circle Stanley Cup contenders?

Nearly every team across the NHL is entering the final stretch of the season, with roughly 20 games remaining in the run to the Stanley Cup Playoffs and for others, a lengthy offseason. 

With time winding down and the NHL Trade Deadline approaching, Tyler Yaremchuk and Carter Hutton, hosts of Monday’s episode of Daily Faceoff Live, broke down their inner circle contenders for the 2025-26 Stanley Cup.

Tyler Yaremchuk: I had four teams that I have as true, authentic Stanley Cup contenders. I have the Colorado Avalanche, Tampa Bay Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes and Dallas Stars. For Colorado and Dallas, it’s simple; they’re the two best teams in the Western Conference, and it’s not even close. For Colorado, they’re the best five-on-five team in the NHL, and it’s not even close. They have a five-on-five goals for percentage of 65% this year, which is almost 8% better than second place in the NHL, and that second-place team is Tampa Bay, which I think is by far the best team in the Eastern Conference. Carolina. I included it because I think their path to the Eastern Conference Final is incredibly easy.

Carter Hutton: It was really hard trying to differentiate from what you had. For me, in the inner circle, I added the Minnesota Wild because I just thought that was a team that I would add in

because I don’t think they’re done, and I think there is a lot of pressure on this team. 

I like the fact that if they don’t move off of Jesper Wallstedt, you have two really good options in that to kind of get you through, to try to win a series. The other team I added in there was the Edmonton Oilers, because I do think they’re not done. I think there’s potential for them to grow and improve. I’m never going to count on a team with Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid…I believe they still are a legitimate cup contender because of the superstar dominance on that team.

You can catch the full segment on the latest episode of Daily Faceoff Live right here…