NHL 2026-27 preseason schedule to begin Sept. 19

NEW YORK – 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.

For the latest schedule information, visit https://www.nhl.com/schedule.

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.Page 2 of 5

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.Page 3 of 5

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.