2026-27 NHL PRESEASON SCHEDULE
The 2026-27 NHL preseason schedule, an eight-day, 65-game slate played across 36 NHL and neutral-site venues, begins Saturday, Sept. 19, and runs through Saturday, Sept. 26. This marks the first season of a reduced preseason schedule resulting from the NHL/NHLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement, accommodating the expansion of the regular-season schedule to 84 games with the addition of two more divisional games per team.
A marquee preseason matchup will celebrate Saint-Boniface, Que., the Kraft Hockeyville-winning community for 2025. The Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators will face off on Monday, Sept. 21, at the Colisée Vidéotron in Trois-Rivières.
While the Kraft Hockeyville game will be played in nearby Trois-Rivières due to logistical requirements, Saint-Boniface’s local arena Aréna de Saint-Boniface will be the beneficiary of a grand prize arena upgrade. Saint-Boniface received $250,000 for upgrades to its local arena and $10,000 worth of youth hockey equipment from NHLPA Goals & Dreams.
Other neutral-site contests will be played in Greensboro, N.C. (Carolina vs. Nashville, Sept. 24); Hershey, Pa. (Philadelphia vs. Washington, Sept. 21) and Ontario, Calif. (Los Angeles vs. Vegas, Sept. 19).
The preseason closes with 14 games on Saturday, Sept. 26. The 2026-27 regular season opens on Tuesday, Sept. 29, with an opening-night tripleheader broadcast on ESPN in the U.S. and a doubleheader on Sportsnet in Canada.
2026-27 NHL PRESEASON SCHEDULE (all times Eastern)
SATURDAY, SEPT. 19
Dallas at St. Louis, 7 p.m.
Montreal (split-squad) at Toronto (split-squad), 7 p.m.
Toronto (split-squad) at Montreal (split-squad), 7 p.m.
Winnipeg at Edmonton, 8 p.m.
Chicago at Minnesota, 8 p.m.
Los Angeles vs. Vegas, at Ontario, Calif. (Toyota Arena), 9 p.m.
Vancouver at Seattle, 9 p.m.
SUNDAY, SEPT. 20
NY Islanders at New Jersey, 1 p.m.
San Jose at Anaheim, 4 p.m.
Nashville at Tampa Bay, 5 p.m.
Washington at Boston, 5 p.m.
Carolina at Florida, 7 p.m.
Utah at Colorado, 7 p.m.
Seattle at Calgary, 8 p.m.
MONDAY, SEPT. 21
Buffalo at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Detroit at Columbus, 7 p.m.
NY Rangers at New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Philadelphia vs. Washington, at Hershey, Pa. (Giant Center), 7 p.m.
Montreal vs. Ottawa, at Trois-Rivières, Que. (Colisée Vidéotron) (Kraft Hockeyville), 7 p.m.
Colorado at Winnipeg, 8 p.m.
Minnesota at Chicago, 8 p.m.
St. Louis at Dallas, 8 p.m.
TUESDAY, SEPT. 22
Columbus at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Detroit at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Florida at Carolina, 7 p.m.
NY Islanders at NY Rangers, 7 p.m.
Philadelphia at Boston, 7 p.m.
Edmonton at Winnipeg, 8 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Nashville, 8 p.m.
Vancouver at Calgary, 9 p.m.
Utah at Los Angeles, 10 p.m.
Vegas at San Jose, 10 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 23
Ottawa (split-squad) at Toronto (split-squad), 7 p.m.
Toronto (split-squad) at Ottawa (split-squad), 7 p.m.
Minnesota at Dallas, 8 p.m.
Los Angeles at Anaheim, 10 p.m.
THURSDAY, SEPT. 24
Boston at Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Buffalo at Detroit, 7 p.m.
Florida at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
Carolina vs. Nashville, at Greensboro, N.C. (First Horizon Coliseum), 7 p.m.
New Jersey at NY Rangers, 7 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Columbus, 7 p.m.
Chicago at St. Louis, 8 p.m.
Edmonton at Vancouver, 9 p.m.
Calgary at Seattle, 9:40 p.m.
Anaheim at San Jose, 10 p.m.
Utah at Vegas, 10 p.m.
FRIDAY, SEPT. 25
Boston at Washington, 7 p.m.
NY Rangers at NY Islanders, 7:30 p.m.
Dallas at Minnesota, 8 p.m.
Winnipeg at Colorado, 8:30 p.m.
SATURDAY, SEPT. 26
Carolina at Nashville, 3 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Buffalo, 3 p.m.
Anaheim at Los Angeles, 4 p.m.
Colorado at Utah, 5 p.m.
Washington at Philadelphia, 5 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Florida, 6 p.m.
Seattle at Vancouver, 7 p.m.
St. Louis at Chicago, 7 p.m.
Columbus at Detroit, 7 p.m.
Montreal (split-squad) at Ottawa (split-squad), 7 p.m.
Ottawa (split-squad) at Montreal (split-squad), 7 p.m.
New Jersey at NY Islanders, 7:30 p.m.
Calgary at Edmonton, 9 p.m.
San Jose at Vegas, 10 p.m.