On Wednesday, the NHL released the official schedule for the upcoming 2025-26 season. All 32 teams were included with each highlighting their home opener.

As expected, the Maple Leafs will host the Canadiens to begin the season. It’s been a league tradition to have the best hockey rivalry kick things off. In another heated rivalry, the Battle of Alberta will commence when the Oilers host the Flames on Wednesday, Oct. 8.

The first day of the upcoming season will be on Tuesday, Oct. 7. A tripleheader on ESPN will feature the two-time defending champion Panthers taking on the Blackhawks. That’ll be followed by the Rangers hosting the Penguins. The final game has the Kings playing host to the Avalanche.

Rangers to Play 12 Back-To-Backs

After taking on the Sidney Crosby Pens in a battle that features new head coach Mike Sullivan facing his former team who he guided to two Stanley Cups, the Rangers will visit the Sabres on Oct. 9 before visiting the Pens on Oct. 11.

The first month of the season heats up with key matchups against the Capitals, Maple Leafs and Canadiens. The Blueshirts will also see the Oilers twice over a 16-day span, with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl paying a visit to Madison Square Garden on Oct. 14. The Rangers will conclude October at Edmonton on Oct. 30, as part of a four-game Western swing. The road trip concludes at Seattle on Nov. 1 where they’ll see familiar faces, Kaapo Kakko and Ryan Lindgren.

While some teams got nailed with tougher schedules in what’s an Olympic season, the Rangers have a manageable 12 back-to-backs. They are as follow:

1. Nov. 7-8 at Red Wings and vs. Islanders
2. Nov. 15-16 at Blue Jackets and vs. Red Wings
3. Nov. 28-29 at Bruins and vs. Lightning
4. Dec. 6-7 vs. Avalanche and Golden Knights
5. Dec. 15-16 vs. Ducks and Canucks
6. Dec. 20-21 vs. Flyers and at Predators
7. Jan. 19-20 at Ducks and at Kings
8. Jan. 28-29 at Islanders and vs. Islanders
9. Mar. 9-10 at Flyers and vs. Flames
10. Mar. 18-19 vs. Devils and at Blue Jackets
11. Mar. 22-23 vs. Jets and Senators
12. Apr. 4-5 vs. Red Wings and Capitals

The Disappointing Part of Schedule

If there’s one area that the NHL is missing the mark on, it’s the lack of emphasis on rivalries.

Our blog is titled the Battle of Hudson due to the intense disdain between the Rangers and Devils. That’s especially true for the fans of the Hudson rivalry, which has been around since the 1990s. It was around that time when it peaked. Both teams won Cups and battled during both the regular season and postseason.

While each side’s past stars who built the rivalry into one of the best are long retired, with some even working upstairs, there’s new faces that have made the games interesting to watch. Even if it’s no longer Brodeur, Richter, Stevens, Leetch, Niedermayer, Messier, you have fresh faces in Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt and Nico Hischier leading the way for New Jersey against established stars, Artemi Panarin, Adam Fox and Igor Shesterkin.

Somehow, the Rangers and Devils won’t see each other until March. Following the Olympic break, they’ll meet three times over a four-week span. The Devils have the first game at The Prudential Center on Mar. 7. The Rangers will then host the Devils on Mar. 18. The final matchup takes place on Mar. 31 at The Garden. Astonishingly, those are the only three times they’ll face off during the regular season.

It’s disappointing that there aren’t more rivalry games guaranteed over the 82-game schedule. It seems like the league would rather have more meaningless games when teams see the other conference twice a year. In what world should the Rangers and Devils battle the Oilers one fewer time than facing each other?

There’s no logic to it. It makes about as much sense as the proposed increase to an 84-game schedule, which will further lengthen the season beginning in 2026-27.

What would you expect from a league that wants to expand to 34 teams, with failed markets Atlanta and Phoenix likely destinations? All they see is the revenue. Not that it’ll further dilute the talent pool.

A Possible Solution

I’ve been a big proponent of changing the schedule to highlight more rivalry games inside the division. In an 82-game season, shouldn’t division rivals play each other more than 3-4 times? It’s absurd.

Even if the Rangers battle the other seven teams inside the Metropolitan Division four times, that only totals 28 games out of 82. That isn’t enough during the season. That Apr. 11 game against the Stars really carries a lot of significance. Imagine if they actually cared about having meaningful hockey at the end of the season. That would be like promoting the game’s best players. Who’s running things? The Rangers PR staff.

If the league wants to get it right, then they should correct a wrong. It’s simple. Divisional rivals should meet six times a year. There are eight teams in each division. That would put more emphasis on division races. Where those valuable extra points matter most. If they played each other half a dozen times, that would total 42 games.

In the same conference, you should still play each team in the other division three times. That would total 24 games – leaving 16 for the other conference. Instead of facing teams outside your conference twice, it should only be once a season, with teams alternating home games.

Most notably, if they went to that schedule, it would total exactly 82 games while emphasizing more familiar opponents inside each division and conference. That would make the playoff race better for both the players and the fans.

Centennial Season Should Recognize Rangers’ Past

For the Rangers, it marks their centennial season. A century ago, they entered the league in 1926-27. Under Lester Patrick, they won the franchise’s first Cup in 1927-28 by defeating the Montreal Maroons in five games. Frank Boucher led all scorers with four goals. Bill Cook had a goal and assist. Brother Bun Cook helped form the famed Bread Line.

Ironically, the current Rangers’ best scorer is nicknamed the Bread Man. Panarin gets a lot more press than two of the franchise’s all-time greats ever have. Both Boucher and Bill Cook deserve to be recognized. Instead, they have been all but forgotten by the Rangers, who too often act like their franchise history originated in 1994.

Look how long it took them to honor Andy Bathgate, Harry Howell, Jean Ratelle, and Vic Hadfield. They never even honored former legendary coach and general manager Emile “Cat” Francis. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1982 as a builder. Sadly, Francis passed away on Feb. 19, 2022. He was 95.

If they were more keyed in on the actual history, the Rangers should recognize their past during the centennial season. If only they really cared.