The NHL is set to go to fewer preseason games starting with the 2026-27 season, when teams are expected to play four preseason games instead of the current longer slate.

If you mean “only 2 preseason games,” that does not appear to be the leaguewide plan. What’s being reported is a reduction by two games , not a reduction down to two total preseason games per team.

What’s changing

  • Current preseason schedule: 2025-26 is still a full preseason slate.
  • Next major change: beginning in 2026-27, preseason is expected to drop to four games per team.
  • Regular season change: the same reported agreement would expand the regular season from 82 to 84 games.

Why the confusion

Some discussions online phrase it as “remove 2 preseason games,” which can sound like teams would only have two preseason games left. In the reporting, though, the intended meaning is a two-game reduction from the current preseason format.

Quick answer

So the shortest answer is: starting in 2026-27, not now, and it’s expected to be four preseason games per team, not two.

Would you like a simple year-by-year breakdown of how the NHL schedule changes from 2025-26 to 2026-27?