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The NHL is Reportedly Mulling Over Major Changes For the 2026-27 Season

Originally posted on Maple Leafs Daily | By Dean Chaudhry | Last updated Mar 14, 2025 4:36 PM ET

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman is considering major changes ahead of the 2026-27 season that will affect the schedule, start date for the season, and more.

With how the NHL has progressed nationally and internationally over the last few seasons, great things are on the horizon as exhibited by the massive rise in the league's salary cap.

One thing that the NHL has mulled over, particularly over the last few years, is extending the schedule beyond 82 games and potentially even starting the season in the month of September.

The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun has reported that the NHL and NHL Players' Association are mulling over the idea of an 84-game season, one that will look to shorten the pre-season and bring about an earlier start date, most likely in September.

Part of the reason why it has been discussed a lot more recently is because of the addition of international tournaments like the Olympic Games and the World Cup of Hockey. The idea is to have a less congested schedule but to keep the end date the same, which would still be around late June.

'So in other words, they'd extend the calendar on the regular season to create a schedule that's not quite as jam-packed and also takes into account best-on-best hockey breaks every two seasons for the Olympics and World Cups, as well as accommodating 84 games.'

While extending the amount of games and having an earlier start date are at the forefront of discussions, another major conversation being had is regarding a shift in the scheduling where teams don't have to play in the same arena at least once every year, while other teams are pushing for more rivalry and divisional matchups.

'...so that teams don't necessarily have to play at least one game in each NHL arena every season. There are some teams pushing for more divisional and rivalry games. Having said that, some teams won't want to go two years without seeing Connor McDavid in their building or a strong-drawing team like the New York Rangers or Toronto Maple Leafs or Montreal Canadiens...'

The NHL's All-Star Game is also being talked about and it sounds like they could be cancelling it next year. The issue at hand is that the All-Star Game was already given to the New York Islanders but it would be held right before the Winter Olympics.

While it seems unlikely at this stage because it was already announced, this would be the first time since 2002 that the All-Star Game is being held in the same year as the Olympics. Due to the success from the 4-Nations Face-Off, the All-Star Game has lost way more fandom and scrapping it completely is something that's on the table moving forward.

While 2025-26 is going to resemble what we're used to, expect a lot of major changes ahead of the 2026-27 season if both sides can come to an agreement.

This article first appeared on Maple Leafs Daily and was syndicated with permission.

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