2024-25 NHL season: Date, Event Details, Streaming Details, Odds, and Predictions
Hey there, ice hockey enthusiasts! Are you ready for the thrill of the 2024–25 NHL season? We can almost hear the sound of skates on ice as you prepare to cheer for your favorite team and player. This upcoming 2024-25 NHL season, the 108th in the league’s history, will kick off on October 4, 2024. Looking over the league business of Utah expansion and Arizona Coyotes deactivation, the Arizona Coyotes faced uncertainty about their future due to needing a new arena. The NHL allowed them to explore a move to Salt Lake City, but instead, the franchise was marked “inactive,” and a new expansion team was formed. Despite a sale, the Coyotes’ owner retained the rights to the team for five years. However, the auction for the franchise was later canceled, leaving its future uncertain. The Utah Hockey Club, the new team, will play its first season without an official name, mascot, or colors.
In North America, the National Hockey League plays professional ice hockey. There are 32 teams in the league, 25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. At the end of each season, the Stanley Cup, the oldest professional sports trophy in North America, is awarded annually to the league playoff champion. NHL teams comprised 31 from 2017-18 to 2019-20, 24 based in the US and 7 in Canada. They divided the teams into two conferences: the Eastern and Western. Each conference was split into two decisions: the Eastern Conference contained 16 teams, eight per division, and the Western Conference had 15 teams, seven in the Central and eight in the Pacific. The NHL has a rich expansion history, having grown from 21 to 30 teams in the 1990s, relocating four teams to larger cities. It held 30 teams from 2000–01 until 2017, when the Vegas Golden Knights joined, followed by the Seattle Kraken in 2021. In 2024, a Utah team was briefly added, but the league remains at 32 teams after efforts to reactivate the Arizona Coyotes were abandoned.
The NHL season is divided into a preseason from September to early October, a regular season from early October through early April, and a postseason. In addition, the annual NHL entry draft consists of a seven-round off-season draft held in June on a date of the commissioners’ choosing. The draft order is determined by a combination of regular season standings, playoff results, and a weighted lottery for the 16 non-playoff teams, with the last-place team having the best chance in the lottery. The remaining non-playoff teams are ordered by their regular season standings. For playoff teams, the order is based on regular season points, with non-division winners eliminated in the first two rounds, picking first, followed by division winners who didn’t reach the conference. Finals. Conference finalists get the 29th and 30th picks, the Stanley Cup runner-up gets the 31st, and the champions get the final pick. This process ensures that the teams with the worst records have the best chance to improve by selecting the most promising new players. Check our website for updates on the upcoming NHL 2024-25 games. Stay tuned for the latest news, streaming details, odds, and predictions for the existing teams.
Key Dates for the 2024-25 NHL Season
Event | Date |
NHL Preseason | September 21- October 5, 2024 |
NHL Global Series | October 4-5, 2024 |
NHL Opening Night | October 8, 2024 |
Rangers Home Opener | October 12, 2024 |
Frozen Frenzy | October 22, 2024 |
Holiday Roster Freeze | December 20-27, 2024 |
4 Nations Face-Off | February 10-21, 2025 |
Trade Deadline | March 7, 2025 |
Last Day of the Regular Season | April 17, 2025 |
First Day of the Stanley Cup Playoffs | April 19, 2024 |
Scheduling Matrix
Each Division Has Eight Teams
Games Within Division
Five teams play two home and two away games each (A total of 10 home and ten away games)
One team plays two home and one away game (A total of 2 home and one away game)
One team plays one home and two away games (A total of one home and two away games)
Games Within Conference (Non-Division)
Four teams play two home games and one away game each, for eight home games and four away games.
Four teams play one home game and two away games each, for four home games and eight away games.
Non-Conference Games
16 teams x 1 home / 1 away (Subtotal 16 home / 16 away)
Grand Total – 82 Games
41 home / 41 away
2024-25 NHL Rule Changes
On June 26, 2024, the following rule modifications for the NHL in 2024–25 were revealed.
- Rule 38.2: The coach’s challenge now allows a penalty for a puck out of play to be overturned. Unlike delay-of-game penalties, which apply only when the puck is determined to have deflected off a stick, glass, or board, this policy will not apply to judgment calls on how the puck left the defensive zone. An additional two-minute minor penalty will be assessed in case of a failed challenge.
- Rule 63.8: This rule will prevent the defensive team from changing lines if their goalie unintentionally knocks the net loose.
- Rule 76.4: If the offensive center violates the face-off rule after an icing, they will be given one warning.
- Rule 75.3: If players are found to be sitting on the boards, the referee will warn the offending team. After issuing one warning during a game, the team that did so will receive a minor bench penalty for subsequent infractions.
Regular season
The regular season is scheduled from October 4, 2024, through April 17, 2025.
International games
The Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils will play their first two regular-season games at Prague’s O2 Arena on October 4 and 5, 2024. Then, the Dallas Stars and Florida Panthers will play two games at Tampere, Finland’s Nokia Arena, on November 1 and 2.
Outdoor games
On December 31, 2024, at Wrigley Field in Chicago, the Chicago Blackhawks and the St. Louis Blues will square off in the NHL Winter Classic 2025.
On March 1, 2025, an NHL Stadium Series matchup between the Detroit Red Wings and the Columbus Blue Jackets will occur at Ohio Stadium on the Ohio State University campus in Columbus, Ohio.
4 Nations Face-Off
To prepare for the NHL’s return to Olympic competition in 2026, the league will hold a new 4 Nations Face-Off tournament instead of the All-Star Game. From February 12 to February 20, seven games will be played by four teams of NHL players from Canada, Finland, Sweden, and the United States. Bell Centre in Montreal and the TD Garden in Boston will host games.
Where to Watch the 2024-25 NHL Season?
Fans can watch the 2024-25 NHL season on the following networks:
You can catch NHL games in the United States on ESPN, ESPN+, TNT, and ABC.
In Canada, hockey fans can tune into SportsNet, CBC, and TVAS for comprehensive coverage.
Predictions
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Tampa Bay Lightning
On October 22, 2024, the Toronto Maple Leafs will be on their home ice, welcoming the Tampa Bay Lightning at Scotiabank Arena (Toronto, ON) for the upcoming National Hockey League regular season encounter 2024-25.
Leading Scorers:
- Nikita Kucherov is the top scorer for the Tampa Bay Lightning, with seven goals and two assists.
- William Nylander is the leading scorer for the Toronto Maple Leafs, and he had three goals and one assist.
The two Atlantic Division teams are heading into this match with a defeat, where the Toronto Maple Leafs lost their previous game to the New York Rangers with a score of 1-4. In the first two periods of the game, the Toronto Maple Leafs were utterly lackluster and didn’t find the opportunity to open the scoreboard. Despite this, in the third period, Auston Matthews shot the first goal for the Leafs, but unfortunately, the opponent’s early lead snapped their three consecutive victories. In contrast, the Tampa Bay Lightning snapped their three triumphs by losing their prior match with the Ottawa Senators by a point margin. Even though the offense and defense of the Tampa Bay Lightning were unbalanced in the first period, they outscored the opponent in the second period with a score of 2-3.
As the third period concluded with an equalized score, the first half of dominance by the opponent wrapped up the game in a defeat for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Over their standing, as we stated before, both teams are placed under the same division; on that, the Tampa Bay Lightning is standing in third place with three wins and one loss, and the Toronto Maple Leafs are standing behind the Tampa Bay Lightning with three wins and two losses. Both teams’ offenses were quite impressive, but they needed to do a lot of homework on their defense because once the competition got fiercer, it would be more difficult for them to change or improve their defensive skills due to fatigue and intense competition. The Toronto Maple Leafs will win this game, considering their home-ice advantage.
