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, NC (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 US 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 pm
Montreal (split-squad) at Toronto (split-squad), 7 p.m.
Toronto (split-squad) at Montreal (split-squad), 7 p.m.
Winnipeg to Edmonton, 8 pm
Chicago at Minnesota, 8 pm
Los Angeles vs. Vegas, at Ontario, Calif. (Toyota Arena), 9 p.m.
Vancouver at Seattle, 9 pm
SUNDAY, SEPT. 20
NY Islanders at New Jersey, 1 p.m.
San Jose at Anaheim, 4 pm
Nashville at Tampa Bay, 5 pm
Washington at Boston, 5 pm
Carolina at Florida, 7 pm
Utah at Colorado, 7 pm
Seattle at Calgary, 8 pm
MONDAY, SEPT. 21
Buffalo at Pittsburgh, 7 pm
Detroit at Columbus, 7 pm
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. (Videotron Coliseum) (Kraft Hockeyville ), 7 pm
Colorado at Winnipeg, 8 pm
Minnesota at Chicago, 8 pm
St. Louis at Dallas, 8 pm
TUESDAY, SEPT. 22
Columbus at Buffalo, 7 pm
Detroit at Pittsburgh, 7 pm
Florida at Carolina, 7 pm
NY Islanders at NY Rangers , 7 p.m.
Philadelphia at Boston, 7 pm
Edmonton at Winnipeg, 8 pm
Tampa Bay at Nashville, 8 pm
Vancouver at Calgary, 9 pm
Utah at Los Angeles, 10 pm
Vegas at San Jose, 10 pm
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 pm
Los Angeles at Anaheim, 10 pm
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24
Boston at Philadelphia, 7 pm
Buffalo at Detroit, 7 pm
Florida at Tampa Bay, 7 pm
Carolina vs. Nashville, at Greensboro, NC (First Horizon Coliseum), 7 p.m.
New Jersey at NY Rangers , 7 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Columbus, 7 pm
Chicago at St. Louis, 8 pm
Edmonton to Vancouver, 9 pm
Calgary at Seattle, 9:40 pm
Anaheim at San Jose, 10 pm
Utah at Vegas, 10 pm
FRIDAY, SEPT. 25
Boston at Washington, 7 pm
NY Rangers at NY Islanders , 7:30 p.m.
Dallas at Minnesota, 8 pm
Winnipeg at Colorado, 8:30 pm
SATURDAY, SEPT. 26
Carolina at Nashville, 3 pm
Pittsburgh at Buffalo, 3 pm
Anaheim at Los Angeles, 4 pm
Colorado at Utah, 5 pm
Washington at Philadelphia, 5 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Florida, 6 pm
Seattle at Vancouver, 7 pm
St. Louis at Chicago, 7 pm
Columbus at Detroit, 7 pm
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 pm
San Jose at Vegas, 10 pm
### (8/13/26)
* * * * *
THE 2026-2027 PREPARATORY CALENDAR STARTS ON SEPTEMBER 19
NEW YORK (August 13, 2026) – The 2026-27 NHL preseason schedule , featuring 65 games over eight days at 36 NHL arenas and neutral sites, will begin on Saturday, September 19 and conclude on Saturday, September 26. In accordance with the collective bargaining agreement between the NHL and the NHL Players’ Association (NHLPA), the preseason schedule will be shortened for the first time to facilitate the expansion of the regular season schedule to 84 games, with the addition of two extra division games per team.
One of the featured games of the preseason schedule will celebrate the city of Saint-Boniface, Quebec , the community that won the Kraft Hockeyville 2025 contest . The Montreal Canadiens and the Ottawa Senators will face off on Monday, September 21 at the Colisée Vidéotron in Trois-Rivières.
Although the Kraft Hockeyville game will be held at a nearby facility for logistical reasons, it is the Saint-Boniface Arena, the local arena, that will benefit from the renovations included in the grand prize. Saint-Boniface received $250,000 for the renovation of its home arena and $10,000 worth of youth hockey equipment from the NHLPA’s Goals and Dreams Program fund.
Other games on neutral ice will take place in Greensboro, North Carolina (Carolina vs. Nashville, September 24), Hershey, Pennsylvania (Philadelphia vs. Washington, September 21) and Ontario, California (Los Angeles vs. Vegas, September 19).
The preseason schedule will conclude on Saturday, September 26, with 14 games. The 2026-2027 regular season will begin on Tuesday, September 29, with an opening night featuring three games broadcast on ESPN in the United States and two games broadcast on Sportsnet in Canada.
For the most up-to-date schedule information, visit https://www.nhl.com/fr/schedule .
2026-2027 NHL PRE-SEASON SCHEDULE (all games Eastern Time (ET))
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 19
Dallas to St. Louis, 7 p.m.
Montreal (split team) at Toronto (split team), 7 p.m.
Toronto (split team) at Montreal (split team), 7 p.m.
Winnipeg to Edmonton, 8 p.m.
Chicago, Minnesota, 8 p.m.
Los Angeles vs. Vegas, (at Toyota Arena, Ontario, CA), 9 p.m.
Vancouver to Seattle, 9 p.m.
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20
NY Islanders at New Jersey, 1 p.m.
San Jose to Anaheim, 4 pm
Nashville to Tampa Bay, 5 pm
Washington to Boston, 5 pm
Carolina in Florida, 7 p.m.
Utah to Colorado, 7 p.m.
Seattle to Calgary, 8 p.m.
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 21
Buffalo to Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Detroit to Columbus, 7 p.m.
NY Rangers at New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Philadelphia vs. Washington (at the Giant Center, Hershey, PA), 7 p.m.
Montreal vs Ottawa (at the Videotron Coliseum, Trois-Rivières, QC) (Kraft Hockeyville ), 7 p.m.
Colorado in Winnipeg, 8 p.m.
Minnesota to Chicago, 8 p.m.
St. Louis to Dallas, 8 p.m.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22
Columbus to Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Detroit to Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Florida in the Carolinas, 7 p.m.
NY Islanders at NY Rangers , 7 p.m.
Philadelphia to Boston, 7 p.m.
Edmonton to Winnipeg, 8 p.m.
Tampa Bay to Nashville, 8 p.m.
Vancouver to Calgary, 9 p.m.
Utah to Los Angeles, 10 p.m.
Vegas to San Jose, 10 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23
Ottawa (split team) at Toronto (split team), 7 p.m.
Toronto (split team) at Ottawa (split team), 7 p.m.
Minnesota to Dallas, 8 p.m.
Los Angeles to Anaheim, 10 p.m.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24
Boston to Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Buffalo to Detroit, 7 p.m.
Florida in Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
Carolina vs. Nashville (at First Horizon Coliseum, Greensboro, NC), 7 p.m.
New Jersey at NY Rangers , 7 p.m.
Pittsburgh to Columbus, 7 p.m.
Chicago to St. Louis, 8 p.m.
Edmonton to Vancouver, 9 p.m.
Calgary to Seattle, 9:40 PM
Anaheim to San Jose, 10 p.m.
Utah to Vegas, 10 p.m.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25
Boston to Washington, 7 p.m.
NY Rangers at NY Islanders , 7:30 p.m.
Dallas, Minnesota, 8 p.m.
Winnipeg, Colorado, 8:30 p.m.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26
Caroline in Nashville, 3 p.m.
Pittsburgh to Buffalo, 3 p.m.
Anaheim to Los Angeles, 4 p.m.
Colorado in Utah, 5 p.m.
Washington to Philadelphia, 5 p.m.
Tampa Bay, Florida, 6 p.m.
Seattle to Vancouver, 7 p.m.
St. Louis to Chicago, 7 p.m.
Columbus to Detroit, 7 p.m.
Montreal (split team) at Ottawa (split team), 7 p.m.
Ottawa (split team) at Montreal (split team), 7 p.m.
New Jersey at NY Islanders , 7:30 p.m.
Calgary to Edmonton, 9 p.m.
San Jose to Vegas, 10 p.m.
