The 2025-26 NHL season will feature two competitions.

First, there is the battle for the Stanley Cup. The Florida Panthers will try to become the first NHL team to win three consecutive titles since the New York Islanders won four in a row in the early 1980s.

There’s also a midseason battle for medals as the NHL shuts down the season and sends its players to the Winter Olympics for the first time since 2014.

With preseason games already under way, here are the key dates for the 2025-26 NHL season, including opening and closing days, outdoor games, reunions, the Olympic break, the trade deadline and more.

When does the NHL regular season begin?

The 2025-26 NHL season opens on Oct. 7 with three games, including the Panthers raising their Stanley Cup banner. All of the games will be broadcast by ESPN

Chicago Blackhawks at Florida Panthers, 5 p.m. ET

Pittsburgh Penguins at New York Rangers, 8 p.m. ET

Colorado Avalanche at Los Angeles Kings, 10:30 p.m. ET

Exclusive book: Relive the Panthers’ latest Cup

NHL teams’ home openers

Anaheim Ducks: Oct. 14 vs. Penguins
Boston Bruins: Oct. 9 vs. Blackhawks
Buffalo Sabres: Oct. 9 vs. Rangers
Calgary Flames: Oct. 11 vs. Blues
Carolina Hurricanes: Oct. 9 vs. Devils
Chicago Blackhawks: Oct. 11 vs. Canadiens
Colorado Avalanche: Oct. 9 vs. Mammoth
Columbus Blue Jackets: Oct. 13 vs. Devils
Dallas Stars: Oct. 14 vs. Wild
Detroit Red Wings: Oct. 9 vs. Canadiens
Edmonton Oilers: Oct. 8 vs. Flames
Florida Panthers: Oct. 7 vs. Blackhawks
Los Angeles Kings: Oct. 7 vs. Avalanche
Minnesota Wild: Oct. 11 vs. Blue Jackets
Montreal Canadiens: Oct. 14 vs. Kraken
Nashville Predators: Oct. 9 vs. Blue Jackets
New Jersey Devils: Oct. 16 vs. Panthers
New York Islanders: Oct. 11 vs. Capitals
New York Rangers: Oct. 7 vs. Penguins
Ottawa Senators: Oct. 13 vs. Predators
Philadelphia Flyers: Oct. 13 vs. Panthers
Pittsburgh Penguins: Oct. 9 vs. Islanders
St. Louis Blues: Oct. 9 vs. Wild
San Jose Sharks: Oct. 9 vs. Golden Knights
Seattle Kraken: Oct. 9 vs. Ducks
Tampa Bay Lightning: Oct. 9 vs. Senators
Toronto Maple Leafs: Oct. 8 vs. Canadiens
Utah Mammoth: Oct. 15 vs. Flames
Vancouver Canucks: Oct. 9 vs. Flames
Vegas Golden Knights: Oct. 8 vs. Kings
Washington Capitals: Oct. 8 vs. Bruins
Winnipeg Jets: Oct. 9 vs. Stars

When is Alex Ovechkin’s opening game?

Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin, who broke Wayne Gretzky’s goal record last season, has a chance to break another one this season. He needs 43 goals to break the Hall of Famer’s record of 1,016 combined regular season and playoff goals.

Ovechkin, who combined for 49 goals last season, opens the season on Oct. 8 at home against the Boston Bruins. He is entering the final year of his contract.

What days do all 32 NHL teams play?

All 32 teams will play on the same day twice this season: Oct. 11 and Oct. 28.

When does Brad Marchand return to Boston?

The longtime Bruins star was traded to the Panthers in March and won a Stanley Cup there. He re-signed with Florida for six years and will return to Boston on Oct. 21.

When is the Hall of Fame game?

The Bruins will visit the Toronto Maple Leafs on Nov. 8. Two former Bruins – Zdeno Chara and Joe Thornton – are among the Hockey Hall of Fame inductees. Chara, Thornton, Duncan Keith, Alexander Mogilny, Jennifer Botterill, Brianna Decker and builders Jack Parker and Daniele Sauvageau will be inducted on Nov. 10.

When is the NHL Global Series?

The Pittsburgh Penguins and Nashville Predators will play at Avicii Arena in Stockholm, Sweden on Nov. 14 and 16. Pittsburgh’s Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell and Nashville’s Filip Forsberg are Swedish.

When is the Stanley Cup Final rematch?

The Panthers, who downed Edmonton in the Stanley Cup Final the last two years, will host the Oilers on Nov. 22. They teams will also play in Edmonton on March 19.

When is the Winter Classic?

The Winter Classic will be held on Jan. 2 at the Miami Marlins’ LoanDepot Park. The Panthers will host the New York Rangers at 8 p.m. ET.

When will Olympic teams be named?

No firm date has been set, but full teams are expected to be named in early January.

When does Jonathan Toews return to Chicago?

When does Mitch Marner return to Toronto?

When is the Stadium Series game?

The Tampa Bay Lightning will host the Boston Bruins outdoors on Feb. 1 at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Raymond James Stadium.

When is the Olympic break?

The NHL will take a break from Feb. 6-24 for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy. The men’s gold medal game is scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 22.

When is the NHL trade deadline?

The trade deadline will be at 3 p.m. ET on March 6, 2026.

When does the NHL regular season end?

The regular season is scheduled to end with six games on April 16, 2026.

Games like Alabama vs. LSU, Florida vs. Tennessee, and Georgia vs. Tennessee will no longer be annual matchups.
The SEC plans to reassess these new permanent rivalries every four years.

Now they’ve gone and done it. It’s bad enough they’re trying to turn college football into a watered-down version of the antiseptic No Fun League.

But when the SEC joins the maddening race to see who can best imitate the NFL, well, they’ve gone and crossed the line.

They’re now systematically manipulating the sport of rivalries.

The SEC will announce future nine-game schedules Tuesday, but the news of permanent rivals has already reached the ether — and what in the fresh houndstooth hell is this? 

Now I’m not an economics expert, but there’s no chance that’s good for business. 

The conference that holds itself as bigger and badder than any other, just went soft. It’s a kinder, fairer SEC, ladies and gentlemen.

The games that built the once regional conference into a national Goliath are now an afterthought. Florida-Tennessee was the game of the 1990s in college football, and Alabama-LSU was the best game from 2000 until Nick Saban decided he wasn’t hanging around to watch player empowerment suffocate the sport.

Both are now history because of fairness and equality. We can’t have Alabama playing Auburn, Tennessee and LSU. Florida can’t play Georgia, Tennessee and LSU.

And LSU can’t play Alabama and Florida in the same season. It’s unsustainable. 

I don’t know who at the SEC office needs to hear this, but Alabama plays LSU, Tennessee and Auburn every season. Been doing it for decades, and the world hasn’t screeched to an uneven halt. 

In fact, 11 of Alabama’s 12 real national titles (not the fake, contrived titles), have come over the past 62 years the Tide has played LSU, Tennessee and Auburn in the same season.

My god, what would that struggling, wayward program in Tuscaloosa ever do if the schedule weren’t so difficult?

Florida won all three of its national titles while playing Georgia, LSU and Tennessee every single season since 1990. I’m going to go out on a limb and say playing those three annually isn’t the reason for Florida’s current struggles.

Hiring Moe, Larry and Curly to coach your program over the past two decades is more than likely a significant factor.

Then there’s LSU, which has won national titles with three different coaches since 2003 — and all three of those coaches dealt with a schedule that included Alabama and Florida in the same season.

Here’s the best part of this utter nonsense: the SEC has decided, in its infinite scheduling wisdom, to reassess permanent rivals every four years.

Uh, fellas, permanent means permanent. It doesn’t mean let’s see which program gets hot, and how we can then run cover.

It means establishing and building permanent rivalries that define who and what you are as a conference. Can’t-miss games that dictate the power and growth of the league.

College football’s DNA is rivalries, the lifeblood of a sport that has grown exponentially since the 1990s and is now the No. 2 televised sport in America — behind only the NFL. There’s a reason Rivalry Week is the biggest college football television draw, by far, every season.

Rivalries, more than anything, are the foundation of the sport of arguing. My team is better than yours, my band is better, my conference and coach are better, my quarterback and uniforms and anything else you can throw into the fiery, provincial pit.

It’s different, it’s unique and it’s everlasting. Unless it’s the SEC. 

Where we’ll decide in four years if it means anything.

Then muck it up again.

Matt Hayes is the senior national college football writer for USA TODAY Sports Network. Follow him on X at @MattHayesCFB. 

No lead is safe playing the Minnesota Lynx this postseason.

After suffering heartbreak in last year’s WNBA Finals, the Lynx have been unrelenting in their quest to get back there. They were the league’s best regular season team this year, and now they’re closing in on a return. The past two games, including the start of their WNBA semifinals series against the Phoenix Mercury, this reality manifested itself through comebacks.

Minnesota’s mission looms large when these two teams meet again in Minneapolis for Game 2 of their WNBA semifinals matchup on Tuesday, September 23. The top seed in the WNBA playoffs survived a first-half scare from the Mercury in Game 1, taking a 1-0 series lead despite allowing 47 points before halftime and trailing by as many as nine points. The Lynx locked down Phoenix in the second half, as the trio of Courtney Williams, Napheesa Collier and Kayla McBride combined to put away the Mercury down the stretch. It came just one game after the Lynx overcame a 17-point deficit to finish off their first-round series against the Golden State Valkyries.

Phoenix remained within striking distance into the final four minutes of the fourth quarter. Kahleah Copper had 22 points in her first appearance against the Lynx this season, but leading scorer Satou Sabally was limited to 10 points, but The Mercury, after playing on short rest in Game 1, can still swing home court advantage on Tuesday. The best-of-five series will head to Phoenix later this week.

Here’s how to watch Game 2 of the WNBA semifinals between the Minnesota Lynx and Phoenix Mercury on Tuesday, September 23:

What time is Lynx vs. Mercury Game 2?

Game 2 of the WNBA semifinal series between the No. 1 seed Minnesota Lynx and No. 4 seed Phoenix Mercury is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m. ET.

How to watch Lynx vs. Mercury WNBA playoffs: TV, stream for Game 2

Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Target Center (Minneapolis)
TV: ESPN
Stream: Fubo, ESPN Unlimited

Watch Lynx-Mercury series with Fubo

WNBA playoffs 2025: Lynx vs. Mercury scores, results and schedule

Lynx leads best-of-five WNBA semifinal series, 1-0

Game 1: Lynx 82, Mercury 69
Game 2: Mercury at Lynx, 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday (ESPN)
Game 3: Lynx at Mercury, 10:30 p.m. ET on Friday (ESPN2)
Game 4: Lynx at Mercury, TBD on Sunday*
Game 5: Mercury at Lynx, TBD on Sept. 30*

*if necessary

The injury-ravaged Indiana Fever pulled off the biggest upset of the 2025 WNBA playoffs to start their semifinal series against the Las Vegas Aces, and an unlikely trip to the WNBA Finals suddenly seems within reach.

That’s what is now riding on Game 2 of the WNBA semifinals between the Aces and Fever on Tuesday, Sept. 23 in Las Vegas. The Fever pulled off a stunning 89-73 victory over the Aces in Game 1 after Las Vegas had closed the regular season with 16 consecutive wins and beat the Seattle Storm in the opening round of the playoffs.

All-Star guard Kelsey Mitchell had a playoff career-high 34 points, and the Fever shot 50 percent as a team, spoiling the pregame celebration accompanying the news that Aces star A’Ja Wilson became the first player in WNBA history to win four MVP awards. Wilson had a double-double in Game 1 (16 points, 13 rebounds) but shot just 6-for-22 from the floor.

Here’s how to watch Game 2 of the WNBA semifinals between the Indiana Fever and Las Vegas Aces:

What time is Fever vs. Aces Game 2?

Game 2 of the WNBA semifinals series between the No. 2 seed Las Vegas Aces and No. 6 seed Indiana Fever is scheduled to tip off at 9:30 p.m. ET (6:30 p.m. local) on Tuesday, Sept. 23 at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas.

How to watch Fever vs. Aces WNBA playoffs: TV, stream for Game 2

Date: Tuesday, Sept. 23
Time: 9:30 p.m. ET (6:30 p.m. PT)
Location: Michelob ULTRA Arena (Las Vegas)
TV: ESPN
Stream: Fubo, ESPN Unlimited

Stream Fever-Aces series on Fubo (free trial)

WNBA playoffs 2025: Aces vs. Fever scores, results and schedule

All times Eastern; *-if necessary

Fever lead series 1-0

Game 1: Fever 89, Aces 73
Game 2, Tuesday: Fever at Aces, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 3, Friday: Aces at Fever, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
*Game 4, Sunday: Aces at Fever, 3 p.m. ET on Sunday (ABC)*
Game 5, Tuesday, Sept. 30: Fever at Aces, TBD

Ball security is priority No. 1 for running backs. Derrick Henry’s had issues securing the football through the first three weeks of the season.

The Baltimore Ravens running back had the ball stripped loose by Detroit Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson on first-and-10 with a little over eight minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Lions cornerback D.J. Reed was able to recover the loose football and return it three yards to Baltimore’s 16-yard line.

The Lions were able hit a field goal a few plays later to extend their lead to 31-24. But while Detroit took over possession of the football, Henry was visibly frustrated on the sideline after his turnover.

Henry’s fumbled in each of the first three games of the regular season. He had a critical fourth-quarter fumble in Week 1 that helped the Buffalo Bills rally to win. He lost the football in Week 2 versus the Cleveland Browns and his fumble during the fourth quarter against Detroit led to a field goal. It’s the first time in Henry’s career he’s had multiple fourth quarter fumbles in the same season.

The San Diego Padres became the fifth National League team to secure a spot in the 2025 Major League Baseball playoffs after defeating the Milwaukee Brewers, 5-4, in 11 innings on Monday, Sept. 22.

The Padres sit 2½ games behind the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers, who were idle on Monday but open a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks in Phoenix on Tuesday, Sept. 23. The Dodgers’ magic number to win the division over the Padres is 3.

The Padres won two of three games against the Dodgers in a late-August series in San Diego, taking a brief lead in the division. However, the Padres were unable to take advantage of the moment. While the Dodgers came out of that series and went a middling 4-6 from Aug. 25 through Sept. 5, the Padres had a run of eight losses over 10 games. San Diego has trailed Los Angeles by as few as one game and as many as four ever since.

By securing their spot in the postseason, the Padres now have reached the playoffs in four of the past six seasons. San Diego had five total playoff appearances in the 51 seasons prior to 2020, including two World Series appearances in 1984 and 1998.

Teams that have clinched 2025 MLB playoff spots

National League

Chicago Cubs: NL wild card (magic number to clinch NL No. 4 seed is 4 against San Diego Padres)
Los Angeles Dodgers: At least NL wild card
Milwaukee Brewers: NL Central division (magic number to clinch NL No. 1 seed is 3 against Philadelphia Phillies)
Philadelphia Phillies: NL East division (magic number to clinch NL No. 2 seed is 2 against Los Angeles Dodgers)
San Diego Padres: At least NL wild card

American League

Toronto Blue Jays: At least AL wild card

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Retirement looks good on Jason Kelce.

The Super Bowl champion and former All-Pro center for the Philadelphia Eagles hung up the cleats after the 2023 season, opting to shift into a new career doing whatever he wants. Kelce is a cohost of the ‘New Heights’ podcast with his brother, Travis, and a cohost on ESPN’s ‘Monday Night Countdown.’

He shows up everywhere and anywhere, continuing to be involved in the football world.

On Monday night in Baltimore, he opted to add something else to his repertoire – saxophone player in a marching band. Take a look:

Kelce joined the Baltimore Ravens’ marching band to play the ESPN ‘Monday Night Football’ theme and the team’s fight song.

It’s not necessarily a new venture for the former Eagle, who has famously donned the elaborate attire that is typically worn in the annual Philadelphia ‘Mummers Parade’ on New Year’s Day. The look remains synonymous with his speech at the Eagles’ Super Bowl victory parade in 2018, but that’s not all.

He was also seen playing saxophone during his cameo with the Mummers.

It’s clear that Kelce is more than just a football player. If he sticks around in media long enough, who knows how many more talents of his we’ll discover.

The New York Giants are ‘evaluating everything’ after their third straight loss to open the 2025 season. That includes a potential change at quarterback.

Veteran signal-caller Russell Wilson struggled mightily in the Giants’ Week 3 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on ‘Sunday Night Football.’ He finished the game 18 of 32 on pass attempts for 160 yards, zero touchdowns and two interceptions.

It was a far cry from the 450 yards he threw for against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 2, nearly setting a new career high in the process, along with three touchdown passes.

After Wilson’s second interception, fans at MetLife stadium started chanting, ‘We want Dart,’ referring to rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart, whom the Giants drafted in the first round earlier this year.

In a Monday press conference, head coach Brian Daboll was noncommittal about naming a Week 4 starter behind center.

‘We just watched the tape here, we’re in the meetings with the players right now,’ Daboll said. ‘Like I said yesterday, in order to improve the passing game – and I’d say that was the No. 1 thing we needed to improve from yesterday as a collective – everybody’s got to be doing exactly the right stuff.

‘It’s not all on one guy. There’s multiple reasons why certain plays didn’t come out the way we wanted them to come out.’

When pressed about whether that means a quarterback change is on the table, Daboll just said, ‘We’re evaluating everything.’

The aforementioned Dart appeared in his second straight game on Sunday night but is yet to attempt a pass in the regular season after three strong preseason outings. The package of plays the Giants were reported to have put together for Dart has only included run plays so far, including a couple of read-options.

With Wilson struggling in two out of the Giants’ first three games, the calls for Dart to play will only get louder. So far, New York has done its best to avoid playing its rookie gunslinger to give him extra time to develop and practice against NFL-level defenses.

If the Giants do decide to make a starting quarterback change in Week 4, Dart may not be the next man up. Though he is listed as QB2 behind Wilson, the Giants also have veteran quarterback Jameis Winston on their roster. Through three weeks, he has exclusively served as their emergency third quarterback while Dart has been listed as Wilson’s direct backup.

The G-Men are set to welcome the Los Angeles Chargers to MetLife Stadium next Sunday. In the last two years, the Chargers have featured one of the NFL’s best defenses under defensive coordinator Jesse Minter. Throwing a rookie quarterback into that fire would seemingly go against the cautious philosophy New York has had for Dart so far.

Should the Giants decide to make a change in Week 4, they could turn to Winston instead of Dart if they prefer to continue developing the rookie behind the scenes.

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