In the NFL, the team that finishes with the worst record is awarded the first overall pick in the annual NFL Draft.
In the NHL, the team with the worst record is awarded the best chance to win first overall via the draft lottery.
For a pair of Canadian NHL teams, ideally it would be the other way around.
With five days to go until puck drop, those two Canadian teams are at the top of the list when it comes to the odds to finish with the NHL’s worst record at FanDuel.
The Vancouver Canucks are the favourite at +340.
The Calgary Flames are a close second choice at +380.
No other team on the board is shorter than +700.
For the record, my model agrees that the Canucks are a deserved favourite to finish with the NHL’s worst record, with a bigger gap between them and the Flames than the odds at FanDuel suggest this morning.
Unfortunately for Vancouver, a 32nd-place finish won’t guarantee the first overall pick in 2027.
The fact that the Toronto Maple Leafs landed first overall doesn’t make it any easier for Canucks fans to swallow.
On the flip side, my model likes the Colorado Avalanche to repeat as the Presidents’ Trophy winner at +550.
Interestingly, the model also highlights the Dallas Stars as the best value on the board in that market at +1600 to win the Presidents’ Trophy at FanDuel.
Meanwhile, the Edmonton Oilers are the fourth choice to win the Stanley Cup at +1000, but the sixth choice to win the Presidents’ Trophy at +1200.
After struggling out of the gates in recent seasons, it will be interesting to see how the Oilers fare following an early playoff exit.
It shouldn’t be a surprise to anybody that FanDuel bettors in Alberta have made Evan Bouchard the most popular bet to win the Norris Trophy at +800 odds.
However, you might find it surprising that Connor McDavid isn’t the most popular bet to win the Hart Trophy in Alberta.
In case you missed it, one bettor in Ontario has already placed a six-figure wager on a Canadian NHL team to make the playoffs at FanDuel.
With FanDuel NHL Futures Day less than 24 hours away, the TSN betting team has plenty of insights and analysis, culminating with Friday night’s season preview show.
Make sure you check back in on Friday to find out which rising star has emerged as a more popular bet to win the Hart Trophy than McDavid in Alberta.
I’ll also reveal my FanDuel Best Bets to win the Stanley Cup and attempt to predict the NHL award winners.
In the meantime, my focus shifts from the best and worst records in the NHL to the team I circled as a dark horse contender to finish with the NFL’s worst record.
The Atlanta Falcons were my favourite offseason fade.
I recommended plays on Atlanta 7.5 regular season wins at -130, under 6.5 regular season wins at +125, and under 5.5 regular season wins at +220 before Week 1.
The Miami Dolphins were an obvious favourite to finish with the NFL’s worst record, but I also sprinkled on the Falcons at +1500 as a hedge hoping things could take an early turn for the worst if Penix isn’t healthy.
All four plays look even better now after they opened with back-to-back losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Carolina Panthers.
Tonight, the Falcons stand at an important crossroad.
A win over the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field in Michael Penix’s season debut could provide the spark Atlanta needs to believe it can contend in the mediocre NFC South division.
A loss at Lambeau Field would leave the Falcons at 0-3 ahead of a four-game stretch that features matchups against the New Orleans Saints, Baltimore Ravens, Chicago Bears, and the San Francisco 49ers.
Can Penix lead Atlanta to an upset win in Green Bay?
Or will Jordan Love and the Packers rise to the occasion in a game that they will likely need to have if they want to contend for a playoff spot in the loaded NFC North?
Let’s dive into the matchup and circle a FanDuel Best Bet for Thursday Night Football in this Morning Coffee for Thursday September 24th, 2026.
A FanDuel Best Bet For Thursday Night Football
It’s remarkable to consider how drastically the outlook in Green Bay has changed since last December.
It’s easy to forget now, but we can rewind the clock back nine months to the final game Micah Parsons played for the Packers last season.
At the time, Green Bay was coming off a 28-21 win over the rival Chicago Bears in Week 14 to improve to 9-3-1 – the best record in the NFC North.
Then in Week 15, Parsons suffered a season-ending injury in a 34-26 loss at the Denver Broncos.
The Packers lost their final four regular season games, including a 22-16 overtime loss to Chicago in Week 16.
Green Bay blew a 21-3 halftime lead in a 31-27 loss to the Bears at Soldier Field in the NFC Wild Card Round.
Since acquiring Parsons in a trade with the Dallas Cowboys, the Packers have gone 9-3-1 in games that he starts and finishes, compared to 1-6 without him.
It’s fair to wonder how different their outlook would be right now if Parsons never got hurt.
According to general manager Brian Gutekunst, the team has a pretty good idea of when Parsons will return.
Week 5 is the earliest Parsons will be eligible to be activated from the PUP list.
Now Green Bay must find a way to survive until then.
Running back Josh Jacobs is suspended.
The Packers have also lost wide receiver Jayden Reed, guard Aaron Banks, and tackle Zach Bako-Bewele.
With Banks and Bako-Bewele sidelined, the concern tonight is how well Green Bay protects QB Jordan Love.
In 2025, Love was pressured on 37.3 per cent of his drop backs when Bako-Bewele was on the field, compared to 44 per cent of his drop backs when he was off the field.
Love’s passer rating under pressure this season is 42.8, which ranks 26th in the entire NFL.
Meanwhile, the Atlanta defence currently ranks third in the NFL with a 43.4 per cent pressure rate.
If the Packers can protect Love, he should be able to do operate efficiently against a defence that still gave up 8.0 yards per passing attempt when they pressured Bryce Young in last week’s loss to the Carolina Panthers.
If the pocket breaks down, Love could be in for a long night.
On the other side of the football, Green Bay will face Atlanta’s third different quarterback in as many weeks.
Cooper Rush and Jack Strand have combined to throw one touchdown and five interceptions with seven sacks in losses to the Panthers and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Now Penix is set to make his first start since November.
Penix has flashed some upside at times when healthy over his first two NFL seasons, but he hasn’t played in nearly a year, and he started slow last season when he threw only one touchdown pass in his first three games.
Penix is 1-5 straight up on the road in his NFL career.
However, with the Packers in a brutal scheduling spot, FanDuel bettors have been willing to back the Falcons.
Green Bay has failed to cover five straight games dating back to last season.
Now the Packers are playing on a short week after an overtime game against the New York Jets.
NFL teams laying three or more points on a short week after an overtime game have gone 2-12 against the spread in the Super Bowl era.
Penix’s debut combined with the Green Bay injuries and the short week splits have all contributed to the spread for tonight’s game moving from Packers -6.5 to -4.5.
While I think the Falcons can keep this game close, I’m banking on Green Bay finding a way to win and send Atlanta to 0-3 to bolster all my win total futures.
As for a FanDuel Best Bet, I’ll lock in Christian Watson 70+ receiving yards.
Atlanta has one of the better run defences in the NFL, but they’ve struggled against opposing quarterbacks.
In fact, despite playing the Steelers and Panthers, the Falcons have allowed the eighth-most receiving yards to opposing wide receivers this season.
In Week 2, Tetairoa McMillan, Jalen Coker, and Xavier Legette burned them for a combined 231 yards on 15 receptions in a 34-3 loss to Carolina.
Now they must face the Packers without No. 1 cornerback A.J. Terrell, who was placed on injured reserve with a groin injury.
The Packers have struggled to run the football early on, and it won’t get any easier tonight without Jacobs and two of their five starting offensive linemen.
Instead, I’m banking on Green Bay attacking Atlanta through the air.
Christian Watson is tied for sixth in the entire NFL in wide receiver targets through two weeks with 18.
He ranks seventh among NFL wide receivers with 94.0 receiving yards per game and 13th in receptions with 5.0 per game.
Furthermore, Reed got hurt in the first quarter of Green Bay’s Week 2 win over the Jets.
In the second and third quarter, Watson commanded a whopping 50.0 per cent of the Packers’ pass targets while running a route on 100 per cent of their snaps.
Second-year wide receiver Matthew Golden is off to a hot start, but Watson has been the alpha in a passing game that will be without Reed and could lean on Tucker Kraft as a blocker a little bit more to help slow the pass rush.
I bet Watson over 66.5 receiving yards at FanDuel.
I’ll lock in the updated number at 70+ receiving as a FanDuel Best Bet for Thursday Night Football.
Hopefully, Watson will deliver again and Green Bay can somehow find a way to win their home opener to send Atlanta to 0-3.
Have a great day, everyone!
