by Kaitlyn Rey

The 2024-25 regular season is right around the corner with games beginning as early as October 4th. The Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils open the season in Prague Czechia, October 4th and 5th. Two other teams play in the NHL’s global series including the Nashville Predators and Dallas Stars who play in Tampere Finland on November 1st and 2nd.

Later on in the season, four NHL teams take a trip out of their arenas to play outdoors. On December 31st the Chicago Blackhawks host the St Louis Blues at Wrigley Field and three months later on March 1st the Blue Jackets go against the Detroit Red Wings at Ohio Stadium, home of the Ohio State Buckeyes.

A few other notable dates to keep your eyes out for are October 22nd when all 32 NHL teams are in action, December 16th when the Edmonton Oilers get a Stanley cup rematch by hosting the Florida Panthers, January 18th which is Scotiabank hockey day in Canada meaning all 7 Canadian teams will play, and, of course, October 8th when the season opens in North America with a tripleheader broadcast. Also on October 8th, the Florida Panthers will raise their first Stanley Cup Championship banner before they face the Boston Bruins.

For the New York hockey fans, the Islanders home opener is October 10th and the Rangers following two days after on the 12th. Both teams will open their season at home playing the newly relocated Utah Hockey Club. The regular season will come to an end April 17th after 1,312 total games played (82 per team). Playoffs will follow soon after. Who do you think will raise the cup this year?