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NHL 2026-27 Season Kicks Off Sep 29; Bedard Out

7/19/2026

Summary

NHL Opens Season

The NHL opens its 2026-27 season on September 29 with three ESPN games and 100 televised contests on ESPN, ABC, ESPN+ and Hulu.
Carolina Hurricanes host Florida Panthers at 5 p.m. ET for a banner-raising ceremony.
Chicago Blackhawks play Vegas Golden Knights at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN while forward Connor Bedard misses opening night after shoulder surgery.
Florida starts versus Carolina, then visits San Jose, Anaheim and Los Angeles, with home debut Oct 10 versus Minnesota.

Summary

NHL Expands Europe

The NHL scheduled two regular-season games in Europe, in Helsinki, Finland and Düsseldorf, Germany.
The New York Islanders will play five weekday games before 5 p.m. ET to suit European prime-time.
Twenty of the league’s 84 games start in the afternoon in North America, matching German evening slots.
The NHL called Germany a growth market and hopes early-day games will draw viewers after the Bundesliga ends Monday-night matches.

Summary

Kraken Front-load

The NHL’s new 84-game schedule front-loads the Seattle Kraken’s Pacific Division matchups, giving them 11 of their first 24 games against rivals.
Nearly 40 % of the Kraken’s 28 divisional games occur by the end of October-November, a pace matched only by Calgary last season.
A November road trip to Finland for two games versus the Carolina Hurricanes adds long-haul travel stress to the Kraken’s already dense Pacific schedule.

History

Historical Context

The NHL began staging regular-season games in Europe in 2007 and expanded with the Global Series, debuting three regular-season contests in 2018—a match in Gothenburg and two in Helsinki. Building on that model, the 2026-27 schedule places the New York Islanders and Seattle Kraken in Helsinki and Düsseldorf to tap Finnish and German audiences.

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NHL Opens Season

The NHL opens its 2026-27 season on September 29 with three ESPN games and 100 televised contests on ESPN, ABC, ESPN+ and Hulu.
Carolina Hurricanes host Florida Panthers at 5 p.m. ET for a banner-raising ceremony.
Chicago Blackhawks play Vegas Golden Knights at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN while forward Connor Bedard misses opening night after shoulder surgery.
Florida starts versus Carolina, then visits San Jose, Anaheim and Los Angeles, with home debut Oct 10 versus Minnesota.

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