This may sound like witchcraft, or maybe just wishful thinking, but the NHL believes it can go from an 82-game schedule to an 84-game schedule without taking up more calendar days.
Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly told Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and Kyle Bukauskas at the NHL/NHLPA press gathering in Milan that the league hopes to start the NHL season in September.
“It should allow us to start the season earlier so we’re not extending the overall schedule,” Daly told Friedman and Bukauskas. “The 2026–27 season may be shorter. We’ll see how that plays out.”
The league will also be reducing the length of the preseason, including reducing the number of preseason games.
Shortening the preseason should be well-received by fans. The NHL will have to be careful with how they schedule games early in the fall because some markets still have difficulty competing against college football and the NFL in October and November. Those teams prefer not to play home games on the weekends in those months.
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In case you are wondering how soon Detroit’s Russian prospects Dimitri Buchelnikov and Nikita Tyurin start to play meaningful games, the KHL regular-season starts Sept. 5. Buchelnikov plays for CSKA this season, and it’s unclear whether Tyurin will get much time with Spartak big club. He only played one game in the KHL last season, playing 50 games for the Spartak junior team. He just turned 18 in July.
Hockey Now Network
Florida: Matthew Tkachuk recently had surgery and will miss the start of the 2025-26 NHL season. He missed the last 25 games of the 2024-25 regular-season and then played in the postseason. Florida Panthers.
Montreal: MHN polled fans to see which Montreal prospects they believe are the best. The results are in. Montreal Canadiens.
Philadelphia: Flyers coach Rick Tocchet is imploring the Philadelphia fans to bring more energy to the arena this season. He thinks it would push his team to greater performances. Philadelphia Flyers.