EA Sports has Edmonton ending the 2026-27 NHL season with the Stanley Cup, with Connor McDavid projected to collect the playoff MVP award along with three major regular-season honours.
Edmonton’s projected road to the Cup
- The Oilers open the simulated postseason by eliminating the Los Angeles Kings in six games.
- Edmonton then gets past the Vegas Golden Knights in a seven-game second-round series.
- The Colorado Avalanche are projected to fall to the Oilers in six games in the Western Conference Final.
- That sends Edmonton to a Stanley Cup Final matchup with the Buffalo Sabres.
- The simulation has the Oilers winning the championship in seven games over Buffalo.
McDavid is projected to be at the center of Edmonton’s run. The Oilers captain is the simulated winner of the Hart Memorial Trophy as league MVP, the Art Ross Trophy as the scoring leader, the Ted Lindsay Award as the players’ choice for most outstanding player, and the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
Leon Draisaitl gives Edmonton another projected award winner, taking the Maurice Richard Trophy as the NHL’s leading goal scorer.
Buffalo’s Eastern Conference climb
- The Sabres begin their projected playoff run with a seven-game first-round win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
- Buffalo follows with another seven-game series, this time against the Florida Panthers.
- The defending Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes await in the Eastern Conference Final.
- The Sabres are projected to beat Carolina in seven games, earning a trip to the final against Edmonton.
Other projected award winners
- Toronto Maple Leafs rookie Gavin McKenna is projected to win the Calder Memorial Trophy.
- Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy is projected to claim the Vezina Trophy as the league’s top goaltender.
- Florida captain Aleksander Barkov is slated for the Frank J. Selke Trophy as the NHL’s best defensive forward.
- Colorado’s Cale Makar is projected to take the James Norris Memorial Trophy.
- Avalanche coach Jared Bednar is the simulated Jack Adams Award winner.
Colorado is also forecast to finish first overall in the regular-season standings and capture the Presidents’ Trophy, even though Edmonton is projected to beat the Avalanche on the way to the Cup.
The first chance to see how the forecast starts to hold up comes Tuesday, when the NHL opens its schedule with a tripleheader on ESPN beginning at 5 p.m.
