Carolina at 54% gets the nod as the home team raising a banner, and a projection model floating around had the Canes winning 5-2, though season openers rarely respect models. Carolina posted a 53-22-7 record last season and was lethal in one-goal games, the kind of margins that decide a low-scoring opener. Florida counters with a healthier roster than the one that limped through last spring, Barkov back from reconstructive knee surgery and the top six intact. Opening-night results turn on which team shakes off rust faster and whose goalie is sharp cold, so the modest home edge here is doing honest work rather than overclaiming.
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