Breaking Down the Seattle Kraken’s 2026-27 Schedule

With the height of free agency now in the rearview mirror, all eyes are on the 2026-27 NHL season. On Thursday, the NHL released the schedules for all teams, including the Seattle Kraken. It’s become tradition for organizations to create a social media video to debut their schedules, and the Kraken made a great one using the Seattle airport and other local transportation.

Now that fans can start marking dates on their calendar, here are some highlights from Seattle’s 2026-27 schedule.

Kraken Open the Season on the Road in Canada 

This season, the NHL has reduced the number of preseason games in favor of a longer season schedule. Each team will only play four preseason games, while the regular season has been extended to 84 games.

That means the 2026-27 regular-season schedule will open on Sep. 29 with five matchups. The Kraken don’t play their first game until Oct. 1 against the Calgary Flames in Calgary. This will be the fifth time in six seasons that Seattle opens their season on the road, and it will be a historic night for the Flames, as it marks their last home opener in the Scotiabank Saddledome. The team is moving to its new arena, Scotia Place, for the 2027-28 season.

After their opening in Calgary, the Kraken will then take on the Edmonton Oilers on Oct. 3. Seattle has a notoriously bad record against the Oilers, winning only four games in franchise history. Winning one of the four games against the Oilers early will hopefully be a blessing for Seattle, not a curse.

Seattle’s Home Opener Falls on the Second Half of a Back-to-Back

After they face the Oilers, the Kraken will immediately return home to host the Flames for their home opener on Oct. 4.

Entering their sixth season in the league, the Kraken have only won one home opener, and that was last season against the Anaheim Ducks. Since this game falls on the second half of a back-to-back, there will be a ton of pressure on the team to pull out the win. 

Seattle Heads East Early

Last season, the Kraken opened their season at home against some West Coast foes before they headed east to take on the Eastern Canadian teams and some Metropolitan Division matchups. This is again how the Kraken start their season.

Seattle hosts the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 6, two days after their home opener, and immediately hits the road again, heading west to take on the Detroit Red Wings, Washington Capitals, Philadelphia Flyers, Tampa Bay Lightning, and finally the Florida Panthers over the next nine days.

The best part about this stretch is that there are no back-to-backs in sight. Although the Kraken will log a bunch of flight miles early, it should be a boost to knock out some East Coast games early on again.

Kraken Play in First Global Series

November is one of the quieter months on the Kraken’s schedule, and for good reason: they are participating in their first-ever Global Series. Seattle and the Carolina Hurricanes will travel to Helsinki, Finland, and play two games at Veikkaus Arena.

The Kraken will have four days off between their last home game (Nov. 7) and the start of the Global Series, which starts on Thursday, Nov. 12 at 9 AM PT. The second game will take place on Saturday, Nov. 14, at 10 AM PT. Who doesn’t love breakfast hockey?

This should be a great opportunity for the young team.

January and March Are the Kraken’s Busiest Months

The Kraken play 16 games in January and March. In January, the Kraken will play seven games at home and nine games on the road, including another heavy road trip out to the East Coast, where they will play the Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, and close out the road trip against the Minnesota Wild. Seattle will also play in four back-to-backs this month, including three that require travel.

March is similar. The Kraken open the month on the road for their last East Coast road trip of the season, taking on the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, and Boston Bruins. At the end of the month, they have a back-to-back against the Wild and then the Chicago Blackhawks. The home vs. away games are even, eight at home and eight on the road, but it is still a tough schedule.

It will be tough for the Kraken to manage these busy months in the middle and at the end of the season, and they will try to stay healthy and strong to handle these stretches.

Other Points Worth Noting

• If he stays healthy for the whole season, captain Jordan Eberle will reach 1,222 career NHL games
• Frederick Gaudreau should reach his 500th career NHL game in November
• Provided he stays with the team full-time again, Ryan Winterton should play his 100th career NHL game on Oct. 22 against the Utah Mammoth
• Joey Daccord is closing in on his 200th NHL game
• Mackie Samoskevich will return to play against his former team, the Florida Panthers, on Oct. 17
• Dec. 30 will mark Curtis Douglas’ return to the Vancouver Canucks
• The Kraken will play in a total of 13 back-to-backs

Kraken Gearing for a Strong 2026-27 Campaign

While the Kraken have only one postseason appearance in their five seasons in the NHL, they had a strong start to the 2025-26 campaign, but some late-season slips prevented them from reaching the postseason.

There is so much to be excited about this season: new players, like Samoskevich and Douglas, and their first Global Series. Hopefully, the Kraken can keep the spirits high and have a much-needed strong performance in 2026-27.