It’s been over three decades since the last time that a Canadian city threw a Stanley Cup parade.

33 years after the Montreal Canadiens celebrated their last Stanley Cup victory back in 1993, the Habs are on pace to return to the playoffs again this season.

They’re also the lone Canadian team with shorter odds to win it all now than at the start of the regular season.

OH CANADA!! 🍁🥶

One Canadian NHL team has shorter odds to win the Stanley Cup this morning than in the summer.

Montreal Canadiens ➡️ 100-1 📈 40-1

Not good, eh? pic.twitter.com/H0kfZnV9Pm

— Domenic Padula (@Domenic_Padula) February 23, 2026

Despite exceeding expectations, the Habs remain a long shot to win the Stanley Cup at +4000 at FanDuel.

Meanwhile, the Edmonton Oilers remain Canada’s best hope to end the drought.

Edmonton’s odds to win the Stanley Cup have climbed from +750 to +1100 since opening, but they’re still the fifth choice on the board at FanDuel.

The good news for Connor McDavid and company is that the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers are eight points out of a playoff spot with just 25 games left.

The bad news for the Oilers is that the West is stacked, featuring five of the top seven choices to win the Stanley Cup at FanDuel.

That list includes the Colorado Avalanche, Vegas Golden Knights, Dallas Stars, and the Minnesota Wild.

If you’re a Morning Coffee regular, then you know I recommended a play on the Avalanche to win the Stanley Cup at +1000 last summer.

Eight months later, Colorado is the consensus favourite at +220 to win it all, with no other team shorter than +500.

I also gave out the Tampa Bay Lightning at +195 to win the Atlantic Division, parlayed them and the Carolina Hurricanes to win their respective divisions at +534, and added the Bolts to win it all at +1100 back in October.

The Avalanche and Lightning are now the odds-on favourites to win their respective conferences.

While Colorado versus Tampa Bay is the most likely exact Stanley Cup Final matchup, I’ve added a couple more bets on a rising contender to my list of FanDuel futures.

Let’s dive into my latest recommendations in this Morning Coffee for Tuesday February 24th, 2026.

Don’t Sleep On Quinn Hughes And The Surging Wild

It wasn’t long ago that the Avalanche seemed primed to run away with the NHL’s best record.

After a 5-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes in early January to improve to 31-2-7, Colorado was 11 points ahead of Minnesota for the NHL’s best record with three games in hand.

THE AVALANCHE HAVE JUST TWO REGULATION LOSSES THROUGH 40 GAMES 🤯

They break the 1979–80 Flyers record for fewest regulation losses through 40 games in NHL history 🚨

(per @bmcnich) pic.twitter.com/UOdsYxlPzC

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 4, 2026

The Avalanche were on pace for 63 wins and 141 points.

For perspective, the 2022-23 Boston Bruins own the NHL’s all-time records with 65 wins and 135 points.

The Avalanche are the fourth team in NHL history to post multiple double-digit win streaks in the same season.

Colorado is on pace for 141 points, which would be the most by any team in a season 👏 pic.twitter.com/o0EQ3oB0d1

— ESPN Insights (@ESPNInsights) January 4, 2026

However, regression hit in the weeks leading up to the 2026 Winter Olympics, as Colorado stumbled to a 6-7-2 record over its final 15 games before the break.

Around the same time the Avalanche cooled, one of their Central Division rivals started to heat up following a blockbuster trade for one of the NHL’s best defencemen.

The Wild entered the break on a five-game win streak, going 8-1-1 in 10 games dating back to January 17th.

Quinn Hughes, who was acquired from the Vancouver Canucks in mid-December, exploded for 18 points over those final 10 games before the Olympics.

Only Nikita Kucherov (22) and teammate Kirill Kaprizov (18) had more points over that same span.

Since Quinn Hughes’ franchise-record 10-game assist streak began on Jan. 17, he ranks T-1st in the NHL with 16 assists and T-2nd in points (2-16=18).

Since debuting with the #mnwild on Dec. 14, he leads NHL defensemen and ranks second among all skaters with 31 assists.… pic.twitter.com/G1ivYQDkUa

— Minnesota Wild PR (@mnwildPR) February 5, 2026

Meanwhile, in 25 games with Hughes in the lineup, the Wild have gone a remarkable 21-4 to the over, including an epic 18-2 run.

Minnesota is also on a 13-1 first period over run.

The Minnesota Wild acquired Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks in December. ❄️🤝

In 25 games with Hughes in the lineup, the Wild are 21-4 to the over, including 3 straight to make it an 18-2 run in their last 20 games. 🚀

Hughes 1+ point has cashed in 10 straight. 🔥 https://t.co/oQBnMxBH8r

— Domenic Padula (@Domenic_Padula) February 6, 2026

Hughes is the first defenceman in NHL history to record a 10-game assist streak in his first season with a franchise.

Since January 3rd, the Wild have closed the gap from 11 to five points back of the Avalanche for the league’s best record, albeit with three more games played.

On Thursday night, Hughes and company will travel to Colorado for their first game back from the break.

They could be in position to take advantage of tired legs for the Avalanche, which return to action on the road against the Utah Mammoth on Wednesday night.

Four of Colorado’s next six games are on the road.

They’ll also host Minnesota in two of their next three home games to wrap up their regular season series.

Fortunately for anybody who bet them to win the Central Division at FanDuel, the Avalanche should benefit from the NHL’s fourth-easiest remaining strength of schedule.

However, if the Wild could find a way to upset Colorado in head-to-head meetings this Thursday and on Sunday March 8th, it could set the stage for a much closer division title race than anybody expected back in January.

I rolled the dice on Minnesota to win the Central Division at +4000 at FanDuel.

That bet could look ugly if Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and company crush the Wild on Thursday night.

However, if Minnesota pulls out the upset win on the road, that +4000 number will disappear quickly.

Meanwhile, I also grabbed the Wild at +950 to win the Western Conference and +1900 to win the Stanley Cup.

#mnwild Olympic roundup:

🇺🇸: Quinn Hughes was named the tournament’s Best Defender after leading all defensemen in scoring with eight points (1-7=8) in six games and helping Team USA win Gold. pic.twitter.com/na1M0hdr4I

— Minnesota Wild PR (@mnwildPR) February 22, 2026

No disrespect to the Oilers, but Minnesota was the hottest team in the West pre-break, and any value backing them could be gone quickly if they can sustain their momentum heading into the NHL trade deadline.

That’s especially true if Wild GM Bill Guerin has another ace up his sleeve to play during TradeCentre.

Considering the United States went 18 for 18 on the kill in the tournament and 3 for 3 tonight, including a 1:33 5-on-3, think Bill Guerin and staff proved they knew what they were doing

— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) February 22, 2026

After turning around the team’s fortunes with the Hughes trade while building the Team USA Hockey roster that just won gold, Guerin should feel emboldened to go all-in with a contending team that is still flying under the radar.

I’m not willing to wait for him to make his next move.

Give me Minnesota at +1900 to win the Stanley Cup, with some coffee money on the Wild to win the conference at +950 and to win the Central Division at +4000 at FanDuel.

The Wild’s recent surge could turn a division race that nobody saw coming into one of the most fascinating stories to watch over the final few weeks of the season.

If nothing else, it’s an ideal hedge for my Avs futures.