The NHL’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement that goes into effect in September 2026 features a couple of slight alterations in the schedule.

The regular season will increase from 82 games to 84 games and the season will start in September instead of early October.

NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly confirmed the earlier start to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and Kyle Bukauskas at the NHL/NHL Players’ Association European Player Media Tour last week in Italy.

“It (84-game schedule) should allow us to start the season earlier so we’re not extending the overall schedule,” Daly told Friedman and Bukauskas. “The 2026–27 season may be shorter (in days). We’ll see how that plays out.”

Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman said last month that an 84-game season “makes perfect sense.”

“I th

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