NHL 2025-26 Season: Schedule and Preview

The National Hockey League (NHL) teams’ clashes will take place on February 28 and March 1, 2026. As the 2025-26 NHL season reaches the middle stage of the regular season, each game has an important effect on shaping the standings. A complete schedule, including predictions and a match preview.

Regular Season Overview

The NHL shows fights between teams competing for the final champion. Initially, the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Montreal Canadiens will claim to capture a top spot in the Atlantic Division. Meanwhile, the Carolina Hurricanes and the Pittsburgh Penguins will aim to be the top position in the Metropolitan Division.

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Matchup Schedule

Philadelphia Flyers vs. Boston Bruins

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 03:00 p.m. ET | 12:00 p.m. PT | 01:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.

San Jose Sharks vs. Edmonton Oilers

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 04:00 p.m. ET | 01:00 p.m. PT | 02:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: SAP Center in San Jose.

St. Louis Blues vs. New Jersey Devils

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 05:00 p.m. ET | 02:00 p.m. PT | 03:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Enterprise Center in St. Louis.

Colorado Avalanche vs. Chicago Blackhawks

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 06:00 p.m. ET | 03:00 p.m. PT | 04:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Ball Arena in Denver.

Columbus Blue Jackets vs. New York Rangers

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 06:00 p.m. ET | 03:00 p.m. PT | 04:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Nationwide Arena in Columbus.

Tampa Bay Lightning vs Buffalo Sabres

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 07:00 p.m. ET | 04:00 p.m. PT | 05:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Benchmark International Arena in Tampa.

Los Angeles Kings vs. Calgary Flames

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 07:00 p.m. ET | 04:00 p.m. PT | 05:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

Carolina Hurricanes vs. Detroit Red Wings

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 07:00 p.m. ET | 04:00 p.m. PT | 05:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Lenovo Center in Raleigh.

Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Ottawa Senators

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 07:00 p.m. ET | 04:00 p.m. PT | 05:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

Montreal Canadiens vs. Washington Capitals

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 07:00 p.m. ET | 04:00 p.m. PT | 05:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Centre Bell in Montreal.

Dallas Stars vs. Nashville Predators

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 08:00 p.m. ET | 05:00 p.m. PT | 06:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: American Airlines Center in Dallas.

Seattle Kraken vs. Vancouver Canucks

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 09:00 p.m. ET | 07:00 p.m. PT | 08:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle.

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Vegas Golden Knights

Date: March 1, 2026

Time: 01:00 p.m. ET 10:00 a.m. PT 11:30 p.m. IST

Venue: PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

Matches Preview

Let us talk about the key games in the National Hockey League (NHL) with detailed, in-depth information.

Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Buffalo Sabres

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 07:00 p.m. ET | 04:00 p.m. PT | 05:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Benchmark International Arena in Tampa.

Lightning Predicted Lineup

Jake Guentzel—Brayden Point—Nikita Kucherov

Brandon Hagel—Dominic James—Gage Goncalves

Zemgus Girgensons—Yanni Gourde—Pontus Holmberg

Oliver Bjorkstrand—Scott Sabourin

J.J. Moser—Darren Raddysh

Ryan McDonagh—Erik Cernak

Charles-Édouard D’Astous—Emil Lilleberg

Victor Hedman 

Andrei Vasilevskiy

Jonas Johansson

Scratched: Curtis Douglas, Declan Carlile

Sabres Predicted Lineup

Peyton Krebs—Tage Thompson—Alex Tuch

Jason Zucker—Ryan McLeod—Jack Quinn

Noah Ostlund—Josh Norris—Josh Doan

Josh Dunne—Tyson Kozak—Beck Malenstyn

Mattias Samuelsson—Rasmus Dahlin

Bowen Byram—Owen Power

Jacob Bryson—Michael Kesselring

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

Alex Lyon

Scratched: Zach Metsa, Anton Wahlberg, Colten Ellis

Previous Rivalry

The Tampa Bay Lightning lost 5-4 to the Carolina Hurricanes in their most recent NHL game. Jake Guentzel recorded three assists for the Lightning. Brayden Point and Brandon Hagel each had a goal and an assist. They have performed better at home, with a strong record, and will have the upper hand in this game.

Conversely, the Buffalo Sabres defeated the New Jersey Devils 2-1, with Peyton Krebs recording one assist. Tage Thompson and Bowen Byram each added an assist for the Sabres. Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt each recorded an assist for the Devils. The Buffalo Sabres are currently in 4th place in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference with 72 points.

The Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning

Carolina Hurricanes vs. Detroit Red Wings

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 07:00 p.m. ET | 04:00 p.m. PT | 05:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Lenovo Center in Raleigh.

Hurricanes Predicted Lineup

Andrei Svechnikov—Sebastian Aho—Seth Jarvis

Taylor Hall—Logan Stankoven—Jackson Blake

Nikolaj Ehlers—Jordan Staal—Jordan Martinook

William Carrier—Jesperi Kotkaniemi—Eric Robinson 

Jaccob Slavin—Jalen Chatfield

K’Andre Miller—Sean Walker

Shayne Gostisbehere — Alexander Nikishin

Brandon Bussi

Frederik Andersen

Scratched: Mark Jankowski, Mike Reilly

Red Wings Predicted Lineup

Marco Kasper—Dylan Larkin—Lucas Raymond

Alex DeBrincat—Andrew Copp—Patrick Kane

Emmitt Finnie—J.T. Compher—Mason Appleton

Elmer Soderblom—Michael Rasmussen—James van Riemsdyk

Simon Edvinsson—Moritz Seider

Ben Chiarot—Axel Sandin-Pellikka

Albert Johansson—Jacob Bernard-Docker

John Gibson

Cam Talbot

Scratched: Erik Gustafsson, Travis Hamonic

Previous Rivalry

The Carolina Hurricanes currently sit in 1st place in the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference with 80 points. They have played 58 games, recording 37 wins, 15 losses, and six overtime losses. The Hurricanes have scored eight wins and two losses in their last ten games. Pyotr Kochetkov is out with a lower-body injury, and this team will be built on its recent home form to take a winning streak.

Similarly, the Detroit Red Wings have had solid performances in their recent status in the NHL. They have played 59 matches, posting a 34-19-6 record. They have a slightly weaker road record.

The Pick: Carolina Hurricanes

Colorado Avalanche vs. Chicago Blackhawks

Date: February 28, 2026

Time: 06:00 p.m. ET | 03:00 p.m. PT | 04:30 a.m. IST (Next Day)

Venue: Ball Arena in Denver.

Avalanche Predicted Lineup

Artturi Lehkonen—Nathan MacKinnon—Martin Necas

Gabriel Landeskog—Brock Nelson—Valeri Nichushkin

Ross Colton—Jack Drury—Victor Olofsson

Parker Kelly—Zakhar Bardakov—Joel Kiviranta

Devon Toews—Cale Makar

Josh Manson—Brent Burns

Brett Kulak—Sam Malinski

Scott Wedgewood

Mackenzie Blackwood

Scratched: Gavin Brindley

Blackhawks Predicted Lineup

Ryan Greene—Connor Bedard—Andre Burakovsky

Oliver Moore—Frank Nazar—Tyler Bertuzzi

Ryan Donato—Jason Dickinson—Ilya Mikheyev

Teuvo Teravainen—Nick Foligno—Landon Slaggert

Alex Vlasic—Louis Crevier

Connor Murphy—Sam Rinzel

Matt Grzelcyk – Artyom Levshunov

Spencer Knight

Arvid Soderblom

Scratched: Sam Lafferty, Colton Dach, Kevin Korchinski

Previous Rivalry

The Colorado Avalanche remained unbeaten against the Utah Mammoth with a 4-2 victory in their most recent NHL game. Martin Nečas and Parker Kelly each recorded a goal and an assist for the Avalanche. In their last ten games, they have earned a 4-5-1 record.

By contrast, the Chicago Blackhawks lost 4-2 to the Nashville Predators in their most recent match. Ryan Greene and Sam Rinzel each recorded an assist and one point for the Blackhawks. They have scored three wins and two losses in their last ten games.

The Pick: Colorado Avalanche

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Vegas Golden Knights

Date: March 1, 2026

Time: 01:00 p.m. ET 10:00 a.m. PT 11:30 p.m. IST

Venue: PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

Penguins Predicted Lineup

Avery Hayes—Rickard Rakell—Bryan Rust

Egor Chinakhov—Tommy Novak—Evgeni Malkin

Anthony Mantha—Ben Kindel—Justin Brazeau

Connor Dewar—Blake Lizotte—Noel Acciari

Parker Wotherspoon—Erik Karlsson

Samuel Girard—Kris Letang

Ryan Shea—Connor Clifton

Arturs Silovs

Stuart Skinner

Scratched: Kevin Hayes, Ilya Solovyov, Ryan Graves

Golden Knights projected lineup

Ivan Barbashev—Tomas Hertl—Keegan Kolesar

Reilly Smith—Tanner Laczynski—Pavel Dorofeyev

Brandon Saad—Colton Sissons—Alexander Holtz

Cole Reinhardt—Kai Uchacz—Braeden Bowman

Jeremy Lauzon—Rasmus Andersson

Brayden McNabb—Dylan Coghlan

Ben Hutton—Kaedan Korczak

Adin Hill

Akira Schmid

Scratched: Jack Eichel, Noah Hanifin, Shea Theodore, Mark Stone, Mitch Marner

Previous Rivalry

The Pittsburgh Penguins currently sit in second place in the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference with 72 points. They have played 57 games, recording 30 victories, 15 losses, and 12 overtime losses. The Penguins are currently on a two-game winning streak.

Likewise, the Vegas Golden Knights have been consistent, winning three consecutive games in the NHL. They have posted a 4-4-2 record in their last 10 games and are currently in 1st place in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. But they have been weaker on the road this season.

The Pick: Pittsburgh Penguins

Closure

The NHL’s significant match, between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Vegas Golden Knights, is in a crucial top spot in their standings. As the NHL will move into the final phase, where teams will compete for the peak.