Breaking Down the Oilers’ 2025-26 Schedule

At this point in the offseason, most teams have made the moves they could to improve their roster. Now that everything has quieted down, the NHL schedule release provides a topic for discussion as we approach this season. Here’s a breakdown of the Oilers’ 2025-26 schedule.

Oilers’ Heavy Road Schedule Early

The Oilers have a tough schedule out of the gate, which will make it difficult to avoid another poor start to the campaign. Their first two games are at Rogers Place, but 17 of their first 26 games are on the road, including 12 against Eastern Conference opponents. After those first two home games, they hit the road for five straight with contests against the New York Rangers, New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, Detroit Red Wings, and Ottawa Senators. Then they have a lengthy seven-game road trip against Metropolitan Division opponents, as well as the Buffalo Sabres, Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning from Nov. 12 to 22.

The Oilers were 23-16-2 on the road last season, and October and November will be road-heavy months, which could help them find their rhythm and develop chemistry with the newcomers. The team is notoriously slow to start the season, so these early road trips might be a boost. A road-heavy start also means more home games down the stretch. Edmonton will have a nice eight-game homestand from Jan. 18 to Feb. 3, and 11 of 15 January games will be at Rogers Place.

Oilers Don’t Play in the Eastern Time Zone After Christmas

The Oilers don’t travel east in the second half of the season. Their last game in the EST zone is Dec. 18 against the Boston Bruins. As the northernmost team in the league, the Oilers already have a gruelling travel schedule, so having their Eastern road trips finished early could help them stay rested, especially as they get closer to the playoffs.

Oilers Have 13 Back-to-Backs

The Oilers have 13 sets of back-to-back games, the same as last season. Of those 13 sets, 10 are on the road, and three are split between home and away.

Oilers Only Have 2 Friday Games

Why doesn’t the NHL schedule more Friday games? There’s no better way to start the weekend than with a hockey game. Unfortunately, the Oilers only play two games on Friday night, scheduled for consecutive weekends in March. The Carolina Hurricanes are in town on March 6, and the Oilers travel to play the St. Louis Blues on March 13.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Set to Play his 1,000th Game on New Year’s Eve

If he stays healthy, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will play his 1,000th NHL game on Dec. 31 at home against the Bruins. The Oilers’ first-overall pick in 2011 has 748 points in 959 games, good for seventh all-time. He’s also third all-time in games played and will pass Ryan Smyth for second before he eclipses 1,000 games, joining Kevin Lowe as the only two players to reach 1,000 games with the organization. If he plays 79 games in 2025-26, he will become the franchise’s all-time leader. What better way to bring in the new year than by celebrating Nugent-Hopkins’ 1,000th game?

Oilers’ Busiest Months are December & January

The Oilers play 15 games in both December and January. They have eight home games and seven road games in December, but have a much lighter travel schedule in January, with only four away contests, including two in Western Canada, with games against the Winnipeg Jets and Vancouver Canucks.

The NHL will pause for another lengthy break again this season when NHLers will return to the Olympic Games for the first time since 2014. The Oilers have 20 days off in February for the Olympic break and will only play five games that month, and only one at home.