Oilers see Stanley Cup odds boosted big time after strong October

It’s November 1 and the Edmonton Oilers own the second-best record in the entire NHL. Through nine games, Connor McDavid and crew are 7-2-0, a record that was boosted by a five-game win streak.

The early-season success is a dramatic change from Nov. 1, 2015, when Oilers were sitting 4-8-0 and near the bottom of the Western Conference standings. Oh, and they were two days away from losing McDavid to an injury that would cause him to miss 37 games.

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Edmonton’s fantastic October has also affected betting circles, where many had them pegged as lonrg shots in regards to Stanley Cup odds before the season. One book, Bovada, listed them at 33/1 and with an over/under point total of 87.5 just before the 2016-17 season began. Through nine games, it’s a different story.

Bovada updated their Cup odds on Tuesday and now have the Oilers listed as one of 13 NHL teams with improved odds. Edmonton now sits at 10/1 (!), right alongside the Chicago Blackhawks, Montreal Canadiens, Tampa Bay Lightning and Washington Capitals, and only behind the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Here’s the updated list with their preseason odds:

(Preseason/Current)
Pittsburgh Penguins 10/1 9/1
Chicago Blackhawks 15/2 10/1
Edmonton Oilers 33/1 10/1
Montreal Canadiens 25/1 10/1
Tampa Bay Lightning 10/1 10/1
Washington Capitals 10/1 10/1
St. Louis Blues 14/1 12/1
San Jose Sharks 16/1 14/1
New York Rangers 25/1 16/1
Minnesota Wild 25/1 18/1
Dallas Stars 12/1 20/1
Florida Panthers 16/1 22/1
Anaheim Ducks 16/1 25/1
Detroit Red Wings 25/1 25/1
Los Angeles Kings 18/1 25/1
Nashville Predators 16/1 25/1
New Jersey Devils 50/1 33/1
Boston Bruins 25/1 40/1
Calgary Flames 50/1 40/1
Colorado Avalanche 50/1 40/1
New York Islanders 25/1 40/1
Ottawa Senators 50/1 40/1
Philadelphia Flyers 33/1 40/1
Winnipeg Jets 50/1 40/1
Vancouver Canucks 66/1 50/1
Buffalo Sabres 50/1 66/1
Columbus Blue Jackets 66/1 66/1
Toronto Maple Leafs 50/1 66/1
Arizona Coyotes 66/1 100/1
Carolina Hurricanes 66/1 100/1

You know, the Nashville Predators dropping to 25/1 with their 96.51 PDO (per Corsica) is awfully interesting. By that same token, the Oilers’ PDO is 102, which means they’re in for a bit of a fallback, but will it be big enough to knock them from the playoff picture out West, thus bringing them Cup odds back to preseason projections?

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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Sean_Leahy