NHL teams get creative for schedule release day
The National Hockey League (NHL) released its full 2026-27 regular-season schedule on Thursday, prompting many teams to engage in creative social media campaigns for the announcement. Following a trend seen in other sports leagues, the majority of the 32 NHL teams shared videos to reveal their 84-game schedules.
This upcoming season marks a significant change, as it will be the first time since the 1993-94 season that the league will play 84 regular-season games per team. This expanded schedule will result in a total of 1,344 games, setting a new all-time record for the NHL.
Creative Schedule Reveals
Teams across the league utilized various approaches to announce their schedules. For instance, the Boston Bruins created a video where defenseman Nikita Zadorov was depicted as being left in charge of posting the team’s schedule while the administrative staff was on vacation. Zadorov enlisted teammates Charlie McAvoy and Jeremy Swayman, along with the Bruins mascot Blades and anthem singer Todd Angilly, to help brainstorm ideas before ultimately posting the schedule on X.
The new season is set to commence on September 29, which is only the second time in NHL history that the season will begin before October. This earlier start, along with the expanded schedule, is part of a new collective bargaining agreement. The agreement also includes a reduction in the preseason to just four games.
Key Dates and International Play
The 2026-27 NHL season, the 110th in league history, is anticipated to be the longest in over 30 years. The regular season is scheduled to conclude on April 10. Among the notable matchups, the Carolina Hurricanes and Vegas Golden Knights, who met in the recent Stanley Cup Final, will face each other again. The Hurricanes will raise their second championship banner in September before their first game of the season. Their first rematch against the Golden Knights will be in Las Vegas on December 21, followed by another game in Raleigh on January 17.
The NHL will also host two separate Global Series events for the first time in two years. In November, the Hurricanes will play the Seattle Kraken in a pair of games in Helsinki, Finland. This marks the Kraken’s first overseas games since their 2021 debut. The Hurricanes have previously played in Europe once, also in Helsinki, in October 2010. These will be the 12th and 13th regular-season games held in Finland, and the eighth and ninth in Helsinki. The games between the Hurricanes and Kraken are scheduled for November 12 and November 14.
In December, the Ottawa Senators and Chicago Blackhawks will compete in Dusseldorf, Germany, at the PSD Bank Dome. The last time an NHL team played in Germany was in September 2024, for an exhibition match. The only previous regular-season game in Germany was in October 2011. The Blackhawks have played three regular-season games in Europe, with their last appearance in 2019 in Prague, Czechia. The Senators have a 4-1-1 record in international contests, having won against the Detroit Red Wings and Minnesota Wild in the 2023 Global Series in Stockholm, Sweden. The games in Germany are set for December 18 and December 19.
Special Events and All-Star Weekend
The 19th edition of the NHL Winter Classic will take place on New Year’s Eve, featuring the Colorado Avalanche against the Utah Mammoth in Salt Lake City. This will be the Mammoth’s first Winter Classic appearance. The game will be held at Rice-Eccles Stadium, on the campus of the University of Utah, with a scheduled start time of 6 p.m. ET.
The Heritage Classic will also return, with the Winnipeg Jets hosting the Montreal Canadiens at Princess Auto Stadium on October 25. Additionally, the 2027 Stadium Series will feature the Dallas Stars and the Vegas Golden Knights at AT&T Stadium on February 20.
The NHL All-Star Weekend, hosted by the New York Islanders at UBS Arena, will see a revamped format. The skills competition on February 5 will exclusively feature players aged 25 and younger, with six initial events for 10 competitors. Four players will advance to a shootout, and the final two will compete in an obstacle course finale for a prize of $1 million.
On February 6, a five-team tournament will be held. Instead of divisional representation, players will represent their countries: Canada, Finland, Sweden, the United States, and a team composed of athletes from other nations. Each team will play four 3-on-3 games, each lasting 5 minutes. The top two teams from the round robin will proceed to a 10-minute championship game, with the winner receiving $1 million.
The schedule also includes nights where all 32 teams will be in action. The first 16-game night is scheduled for Tuesday, October 13, with games starting at 6 p.m. ET. Another full league schedule will occur on the final day of the season, April 10, with games beginning at Noon ET.
Source: sportsnet.ca
