Bowen Byram facing the Sabres, the Hurricanes raising their Cup banner before taking on Florida and Alex Ovechkin battling Sidney Crosby highlight the NHL's home-opener schedule.
The 2026-27 NHL season is scheduled to begin in September.
A new 84-game schedule and a shortened pre-season mean the NHL will start the regular season a week earlier than usual on Tuesday, Sept. 29.
A tripleheader on ESPN in the U.S. and a doubleheader on Sportsnet in Canada are the highlights of opening night.
The Carolina Hurricanes will raise their Stanley Cup championship banner before facing the Florida Panthers at 5 p.m. ET on ESPN. At 8 p.m., the Boston Bruins host the New York Rangers, and at 10:30 p.m. ET, the Vegas Golden Knights take on the Chicago Blackhawks.
In Canada, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens will battle at Scotiabank Arena before the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks throw down at 10 p.m. ET.
The NHL also confirmed dates for marquee events in 2026-27.
The Winnipeg Jets host the Canadiens at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg for the NHL Heritage Classic on Oct. 25.
The Hurricanes and Seattle Kraken will head to Helsinki for the NHL Global Series Finland on Nov. 12 and 14.
On Dec. 18 and 20, the Ottawa Senators and Chicago Blackhawks will play in Dusseldorf for the NHL Global Series Germany.
On Dec. 31, the Utah Mammoth will play and host their first NHL outdoor game when they face the Colorado Avalanche at Rice Eccles Stadium for the NHL Winter Classic.
NHL All-Star Weekend is set for Feb. 5 and 6 at UBS Arena on Long Island.
The NHL and NHLPA agreed on increasing the number of games per team from 82 to 84 in their latest collective bargaining agreement memorandum of understanding. The extra two games per team will be divisional matchups.
The full schedule is expected to be announced on Thursday around 1 p.m. ET.
Here is each team's home-opener, with extra notes for standout matchups:
Anaheim Ducks: Oct. 4 vs. Florida
Former Ducks captain Radko Gudas likely won't wait long to play against his former squad. His signing rights were traded to the Panthers before free agency, and he signed a six-year contract worth $1.5 million annually.
Boston Bruins: Sept. 29 vs. NY Rangers
Buffalo Sabres: Oct. 3 vs. Chicago
New Blackhawks D-man Bowen Byram returns to Buffalo. The Sabres traded Byram and Jordan Greenway in exchange for the fourth and 45th overall picks in the 2026 draft and Louis Crevier. Byram then signed a six-year contract extension worth $12.5 million annually.
Calgary Flames: Oct. 1 vs. Seattle
Carolina Hurricanes: Sept. 29 vs. Florida
The first game of the NHL season features the past three Stanley Cup champions and the past four Eastern Conference final champs. Florida had made the final from 2023 to 2025, beating the Oilers in 2024 and 2025.
Chicago Blackhawks: Oct. 6 vs. St. Louis
Colorado Avalanche: Sept. 30 vs. Los Angeles
Columbus Blue Jackets: Oct. 1 vs. Buffalo
Dallas Stars: Oct. 2 vs. St. Louis
Detroit Red Wings: Oct. 2 vs. NY Rangers
Edmonton Oilers: Sept. 29 vs. Vancouver
Florida Panthers: Oct. 10 vs. Minnesota
Los Angeles Kings: Oct. 6 vs. Florida
Minnesota Wild: Oct. 3 vs. Boston
Montreal Canadiens: Oct. 6 vs. Carolina
A rematch of the Eastern Conference final shouldn't disappoint. Montreal won Game 1 of that series before the Hurricanes fired off four straight victories.
Nashville Predators: Oct. 1 vs. Minnesota
New Jersey Devils: Oct. 1 vs. Philadelphia
New York Islanders: Oct. 3 vs. New Jersey
New York Rangers: Oct. 1 vs. Tampa Bay
Ottawa Senators: Oct. 8 vs. Philadelphia
Philadelphia Flyers: Sept. 30 vs. Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh Penguins: Oct. 3 vs. Montreal
San Jose Sharks: Oct. 1 vs. Florida
Seattle Kraken: Oct. 4 vs. Calgary
St. Louis Blues: Oct. 8 vs. San Jose
Tampa Bay Lightning: Oct. 3 vs. Washington
John Carlson faces his longtime squad for the first time. After playing parts of 17 seasons for the Capitals, Washington traded Carlson to the Ducks on March 5 in exchange for a first-round pick and third-round pick. Carlson signed a two-year contract with the Bolts in free agency worth $8.5 million annually.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Sept. 29 vs. Montreal
An Original Six matchup marks the first game for Jim Hiller as Leafs coach, John Chayka as Leafs GM and potentially first overall pick Gavin McKenna as a Leafs rookie.
Utah Mammoth: Oct. 1 vs. Chicago
Vancouver Canucks: Oct. 1 vs. Edmonton
Vegas Golden Knights: Sept. 29 vs. Chicago
Washington Capitals: Oct. 7 vs. Pittsburgh
Alex Ovechkin is not done battling Sidney Crosby yet. A game this past April was thought to be the final meeting between them, but Ovechkin re-signed with Washington for one year.
Winnipeg Jets: Oct. 2 vs. Boston
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