The 2025-26 NHL season is underway, and it has not disappointed. With exciting offseason moves shaking up some of the teams and record-breaking contract extensions, the season is off to an action-packed start. The competitiveness of the season has kept fans on the edge of their seats, with the Carolina Hurricanes remaining undefeated the longest in the league, losing their streak on Oct. 20. On the other end of the spectrum, the New York Rangers have made the record books by becoming the first team in league history to be shut out in their first three home games. With plenty of news buzzing around the league, this is a season that shouldn’t be missed.
Some of the biggest stories around the league are regarding the extensions and free agency contracts signed during the off-season and continuing into the regular season. On Sept. 30, the Minnesota Wild announced their signing of 28-year-old star forward Kirill Kaprizov to an eight-year, $136 million contract extension. The extension, which begins in the 2026-27 season, earns Kaprizov a $17 million average annual value and makes him the highest paid player in league history. Kaprizov has not disappointed, having scored nine points in his first four games. However, he has cooled off recently, only scoring 1 point in the following four games. Despite Kaprizov’s flashy contract and star performance, the Wild are currently sitting at 3-4.
The other contract that has caught fans’ attention is Connor McDavid’s contract extension with the Edmonton Oilers. McDavid, commonly regarded as the best player in the league, signed a two-year extension with the Oilers worth $25 million, earning him a $12.5 million average annual value. Fans were quick to compare this contract with Kaprizov’s, arguing that McDavid is not earning what he deserves in comparison. The Oilers CEO Jeff Jackson responded to questions about the contract and stated that no other teams were interested in trading for McDavid.
“Ultimately, there was no trade offer, and we weren’t thinking that at all,” Jackson said in an interview with TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun in The Athletic. “He’s not taking $12.5 million for an extended period of time. So, it’s a decision he made in the short term so that we have three years at $12.5 million, and our goal is to continue to be a good team.”
McDavid has scored eight points in his first seven games of the season, and the Oilers are off to a 3-3-1 start.
Outside of these contracts, teams have been playing action-packed games, and the league standings are a clear indicator of what teams fans can expect to dominate. With all teams being no more than six games into the season, the Carolina Hurricanes remained the only undefeated team. The Hurricanes started the season out strong with a decisive 6-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils, with both K’Andre Miller and Seth Jarvis walking away with 2 points to start out the season. The Hurricanes continued to assert their dominance, besting the Philadelphia Flyers, San Jose Sharks and the Anaheim Ducks. Although all of their victories were against low-ranking teams except for the Devils, the Hurricanes’ start to the season has demonstrated the depth of their roster and the high performance fans can expect from the team. However, they took their first loss of the season against the Las Vegas Golden Knights, 4-1, on Oct. 20.
The Florida Panthers started out the season strong with a 3-0 record by the end of week one, stirring up talk about whether they have the potential to win a third straight Stanley Cup. Since week one, the Panthers have fallen to 3-3. They are playing without star forward Matthew Tkachuck and star defenseman Dmitry Kulikov. The Panthers head coach Paul Maurice has expressed worry about what these injuries mean for the team and its three-peat aspirations.
“I don’t feel there’s any arrogance in our room about how easy this should be because we won last year,” Maurice said. “I don’t know that it’s fear. But there’s a focus, and we need it.”
As of Oct. 17, the Buffalo Sabres were the bottom of the NHL standings and were the last team in the league to win a game this season and were sitting at 1-3. To make matters worse, Sabres forward Josh Norris sustained an upper body injury in the team’s season opener, and he will likely be out for the majority of the season.
Starting the season out with a shut-out loss to the New York Rangers, the Sabres faced further defeat against the league-leading Colorado Avalanche and the Boston Bruins. The Sabres finally snapped their losing streak with a definitive 8-4 victory over the Senators. However, the team has been able to build off of this win. The Sabres have gone 2-1 in their last three games, pushing themselves up the standings and out of last place.
Though these stories have made the headlines, the 2025-26 NHL season has been full of action and exciting stories within every franchise, setting the league up for an exhilarating season.
