Each team in the National Hockey League plays an 84-game regular season. This total is split evenly with 42 games played at home and 42 games played on the road. Across the entire 32-team league, the regular season accounts for 1,344 total matchups before teams transition into the postseason bracket.
Understanding how these games are distributed requires looking past the simple top-line number. The schedule isn't random; it's carefully engineered to balance intense regional rivalries with cross-conference appearances, ensuring every franchise visits every arena across North America.
The Regular Season Game Breakdown
The 84-game schedule follows a specific formula designed to emphasize divisional battles while maintaining league-wide exposure. Teams play opponents across three distinct tiers:
- Divisional Games (28 games): Each team plays four games against every other opponent within its own division. For a team in an eight-team division, this means facing seven divisional rivals four times each (two at home, two away). These matchups carry the highest weight for playoff seeding.
- Conference Games (24 games): Teams play three games against every non-divisional opponent within their broader conference. With eight teams in the opposing division of the same conference, this equals 24 games.
- Inter-Conference Games (32 games): Every team plays two games against each opponent in the opposite conference—one home game and one away game. This guarantees that fans in every city get to see every star player from the opposing conference at least once per year.
This configuration creates a balanced path to the standings, though the physical toll of traveling across multiple time zones remains a massive challenge for players. You can read more about league governance on the Official NHL Website.
Historical Context and Why the Total Changed
The modern schedule hasn't always sat at 84 games. When the league expanded rapidly in the late 1960s and 1970s, the schedule steadily crept upward from 70 games to 80 games.
For nearly three decades—spanning from the mid-1990s through the early 2020s—the standard length sat firmly at 82 games. Shortened seasons occurred due to labor lockouts or global disruptions (such as 1994-95, 2012-13, and 2019-20), but 82 remained the benchmark. The league adjusted the math upward to 84 games to foster deeper divisional rivalries and accommodate a growing inventory of marquee events.
Preseason and Postseason Additions
The 84-game slate only covers the regular season. A complete professional hockey calendar includes two additional phases that add significant mileage to a player's year.
The Preseason
Before the games count toward the standings, teams go through training camp and a brief exhibition schedule in September. Most clubs play between six and eight preseason games. Coaches use these matches to evaluate rookies, test line combinations, and let veterans shake off summer rust. These games don't affect the standings, but they help finalize the opening night roster.
The Stanley Cup Playoffs
Once the regular season concludes in mid-April, the top sixteen teams advance to the postseason. The playoffs consist of up to four rounds of best-of-seven series.
- First Round: Division semifinals within each conference.
- Second Round: Division finals.
- Conference Finals: The final two teams in each conference battle for their respective championship trophies.
- Stanley Cup Final: The Eastern Conference champion plays the Western Conference champion.
A team that goes all the way and plays a maximum of seven games in every single round will add another 28 games to their ledger, pushing their total game count past 110 for the year.
Common Misconceptions About the Schedule
New fans often trip over a few scheduling realities. First, unlike leagues such as the NFL, the NHL schedule is entirely symmetrical regarding home and away counts within specific blocks, but it doesn't mean rest days are distributed evenly. Teams frequently face grueling "back-to-back" sets where they play games on consecutive nights, sometimes in different cities.
Another point of confusion involves the point system. Teams don't just earn wins and losses; regular-season games award two points for a regulation or overtime win, one point for an overtime or shootout loss, and zero points for a regulation loss. This structure means a team's total points matter far more than raw win columns when determining playoff qualification. For official standings tracking, check out ESPN NHL Standings.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do some teams play more consecutive away games than others?
Arena scheduling conflicts heavily influence the calendar. Concerts, circus acts, and shared venue tenants (like NBA basketball teams) force extended road trips, such as the famous annual trips Western Conference teams take during regional events.
Do goals scored in the preseason count toward career records?
No. Preseason statistics are kept entirely separate from official regular season and playoff records. Milestone tracking only begins on opening night.
How many total games does the entire league play in a regular season?
With 32 teams each playing 84 games, and each game involving two teams, the league features 1,344 total regular-season games per year.
What happens if two teams tie in points at the end of the regular season?
The league breaks ties using a strict hierarchy, starting with regulation wins, followed by regulation plus overtime wins, total wins, head-to-head points, and goal differential.
