We are less than 24 hours away from the 2026-27 season beginning as the Carolina Hurricanes try to defend their crown. You might've heard once or twice that the Canes won the Stanley Cup in June, claiming the team's second championship and their first since 2006. Of course, when a new campaign begins, no one cares about what happened last season. Everyone starts at he bottom.
This season, the league has returned to an 84-game format, giving us two more games during the regular season. This also means that the season begins in late September, instead of early to mid-October. The grind is about to begin, so here is what you need to know about the first month and change for the Canes as the journey begins.
Between September 29 and October 31, the Hurricanes will play 15 games. Most of those games will be on the road (9), thanks to an always-present wrinkle in the team's schedule. Those 15 games will feature 12 unique opponents. There are three sets of back-to-backs on the calendar. Every Tuesday features a game, and four of their five Saturdays will be booked as well.
A tough beginning to the year includes two 2026 postseason rematches
The schedule makers decided they wanted to see the Hurricanes play in a lot of postseason rematches to start the year. Their first four games are against teams they've faced during their last two postseason runs. It begins with a 2025 Eastern Conference Finals rematch against Florida on Opening Night, with the Canes and the Panthers kicking off the regular season for the league.
The first weekend of the year features a divisional back-to-back, beginning with the Washington Capitals, whom the Canes beat in the second round in 2025, on Friday. Then, they'll play their first road contest on Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers, one of the two teams the Canes swept last postseason. Then, their trip continues to Montreal for another conference finals rematch.
It'll be a good early test for the Canes. Florida has revamped its team, adding Brady Tkachuk and getting Aleksander Barkov back after missing last season. Washington is considered to be one of the Canes' biggest threats in the Metro. Philadelphia is a young and hungry group, as we saw last season. Montreal had the Canes' number until the playoffs. It's quite the start for the champs.
Ovechkin comes to Raleigh for (possibly) the final time for Frozen Frenzy
Along with their trip to Raleigh on Friday, the Capitals will pay the Hurricanes a visit one more time 11 days later as part of the NHL's Frozen Frenzy, featuring 16 games and all 32 teams across the league. The Canes and the Capitals will drop the puck on Tuesday at 6:45 pm, a little earlier than normal, but it could be a bittersweet moment for the league's greatest goal scorer in his last visit to where it began.
There was much speculation that last season would be Alex Ovechkin's last. He'd already beaten Wayne Gretzky's goals record, so there wasn't much left for him to accomplish. He could've called it a career. Instead, Ovechkin signed a one-year extension and returned to D.C. Of course, we don't actually know if this will be his last year, but we'll continue to speculate until we get the official word.
As long as he keeps playing, there will always be some record for Ovechkin to reach. This year, he's going for another of Gretzky's records, needing 11 goals to surpass his career total in the regular season and postseason combined. He's still a little ways off from 1,000 goals in the regular season, beginning the year with 929.
When the State Fair comes a-knocking, the Canes get out of town
Shortly after the Capitals' second visit, the North Carolina State Fair will roll into town. For 11 days in October, the NC State Fairgrounds will see thousands of people visit for fun, food, and rides. Of course, it would be a nightmare to have the Hurricanes play at home during that time. Traffic is bad enough as it is. Instead, the Canes will begin their annual State Fair trip.
Last year's trip saw them roll through California, Dallas, Colorado, and Las Vegas. This year, they're heading to Western Canada for their annual visits to Winnipeg, Calgary, Vancouver, and Edmonton, with a stop in St. Louis for good measure, too. With five games in eight days, beginning on October 17, the Canes will endure an arduous journey, but it'll be good early-season bonding for the group.
This trip also means a few late nights for the Caniacs on the East Coast. Fortunately, only the games in Vancouver (10 pm) and Edmonton (9 pm) start at unreasonable hours. Their game against the Canucks will conclude the season set after they visit Raleigh 12 days earlier, and, assuming he's healthy by then, their game in Edmonton could be a reunion with Frederik Andersen.
The best part of coming back from a long trip like that, other than the extra day of rest to catch up on sleep, is the homestand that comes with it. The Canes close the month on home ice, welcoming the Bruins and the Blue Jackets as the first two games of a quick three-game homestand. The team will be plenty busy between now and then. It'll be nice to have meaningful hockey back.
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