With the 2025/26 NHL campaign set to get underway on Tuesday it’s time to start asking key questions about the season ahead – such as which team will unveil the most cringeworthy opening-night hype video.
We’ve all been there. It’s opening night at your team’s rink, the warmups are wrapped, you’re settled in your seat and excited for some puck action after a long summer.
The arena lights then dim and a film your team’s marketing department has spent a month producing begins to play…
And all too often, that video looks like something a random teen on TikTok could’ve come up with in 10 minutes.
“It’ll be no easy task to come up with a non-cringe hype video for the Predators for the season ahead.”
So, which of the 32 National Hockey League teams are the top prospective culprits when it comes to the likelihood of churning out the most cringeworthy opening-night hype video?
Having sat through many opening nights, and way too many cringeworthy hype videos, this author is well-placed to walk you through some theoretical NHL odds of the top teams to consider in this spot.
The odds displayed are purely speculative and intended for entertainment purposes only.
Most Cringeworthy Hype Video Odds
| Most Cringeworthy Hype Video |
US Odds |
Implied Probability |
 Nashville Predators |
+300 |
25.00% |
 San Jose Sharks |
+500 |
16.67% |
 Anaheim Ducks |
+800 |
11.11% |
 Toronto Maple Leafs |
+1000 |
9.09% |
 Vegas Golden Knights |
+1200 |
7.69% |
 Chicago Blackhawks |
+1500 |
6.25% |
 Buffalo Sabres |
+2000 |
4.76% |
 Seattle Kraken |
+2000 |
4.76% |
Most Cringeworthy Hype Video Odds Analysis
Nashville Predators | +300
Why are the Predators holding down the top odds here? Nashville massively underperformed last season, making some major free-agent signings and then proceeding to finish with the third-worst points total in the entire NHL.
So, it’ll be no easy task to come up with a non-cringe hype video for the Predators for the season ahead, just like it’s no easy task to come up with a non-cringe video that features country music.
San Jose Sharks | +500
The Sharks have finished dead last in the NHL standings in each of the past two seasons, so there’s zero recent team success for them to draw upon when creating an opening-night hype video.
San Jose also sat second last in attendance last season, ahead of only Utah and its cramped arena situation. The Sharks have promising players in their pipeline, but any season hype video at this point will really stretch reality.
Anaheim Ducks | +800
The Ducks’ connection to their Mighty Ducks past as part of the Disney empire provides myriad hype video possibilities – and most of those possibilities would fall squarely into the cringeworthy category.
It also doesn’t help that Anaheim hasn’t qualified for the playoffs since the 2017/18 season and hasn’t finished better than sixth place in its division during that time. Even Lightning McQueen will struggle to hype that situation.
Most Cringeworthy Hype Video Odds Sleeper
Toronto Maple Leafs | +1000
Sure, the Maple Leafs are an Original Six franchise with lots of NHL history to draw upon for their hype video, but that NHL history also includes zero trips to the Stanley Cup final for the team since 1967.
Toronto has been selling hope to its fanbase for six decades, but all that fanbase got last season was a second-round playoff exit. It’s hard to hype a product when that product is a consistent letdown.
Vegas Glitz and Glamour and Moribund Franchises are all in the Mix
Other teams considered for the top of the cringeworthy opening-night hype video odds board include the Golden Knights, with built-in Vegas glitz and glamour providing plenty of potential to go over the top, along with two moribund franchises in the Blackhawks and Sabres.
And let’s not forget new-kid-on-the-block the Seattle Kraken.
Still, unless the Maple Leafs really pull out all the stops and try to hype their fans with black and white footage of their last Stanley Cup triumph.
We’ll give the top odds to the trio of the Predators, Sharks and Ducks, with Nashville set as the favorite due to the vast arsenal of honky-tonk cringe clips at its disposal.
Disclaimer: The odds displayed for entertainment, political, and other non-sporting events on this page are purely speculative and intended for entertainment purposes only. These are not real betting markets offered by licensed operators. Please note that the odds above have been generated by Oddspedia for this article only. They are not necessarily reflective of the actual probability of the event occurring and it is not possible to place a wager on this event through Oddspedia. Any implied probabilities derived from these odds are not based on professional bookmaking standards and should not be used for actual wagering decisions. Please gamble responsibly with licensed providers.
