Keeping track of the NHL’s calendar of events can be tricky, so we put together a list of the must-know dates starting with opening night in October through the start of free agency in July. Bookmark this page and stay on top of it all.
October 2018
3: Opening night of 2018-19 NHL regular season
6: 2018 NHL Global Series: Edmonton Oilers at New Jersey Devils (Scandinavium, Gothenburg, Sweden)
22: NHL Alumni Awards Gala (Toronto, Ontario)
November 2018
Hockey Fights Cancer Awareness Month
1-2: 2018 NHL Global Series: Florida Panthers vs. Winnipeg Jets (Hartwell Arena, Helsinki, Finland)
9: Hockey Hall of Fame Game: New Jersey Devils at Toronto Maple Leafs (Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Ontario)
12: Hockey Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony (Toronto, Ontario)
13: NHL General Managers Meeting (Toronto, Ontario)
23: 2018 Discover NHL Thanksgiving Showdown: New York Rangers at Philadelphia Flyers (Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA)
26: NHL Founders Day (1917)
December 2018
1: Signing deadline for Group 2 free agents (5 p.m. ET)
12: U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Induction (Nashville, Tennessee)
19: Anniversary of NHL’s first games played in 1917
19-27: Holiday roster freeze in effect
24-26: Holiday break (no scheduled practices)
26- Jan. 5: IIHF World Junior Championship (Vancouver, Victoria, B.C.)
January 2019
1: 2019 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic: Boston Bruins at Chicago Blackhawks (Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, Indiana)
8: USHL/NHL Top Prospects Game (Ice Box, Lincoln, Nebraska)
Week of 21: NHL Central Scouting Midseason Rankings release
23: CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game (ENMAX Centrium, Red Deer, Alta.)
24-27: NHL All-Star Break
24-26: No scheduled practices
25: 2019 NHL All-Star Skills Competition (SAP Center, San Jose, California)
26: 2019 NHL All-Star Game (SAP Center, San Jose, California)
27-28: 2019 AHL All-Star Classic (MassMutual Center, Springfield, Massachusetts)
28: NHL regular season resumes
February 2019
9: 19th Annual Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada (Host: Swift Current, Sask.)
17-24: Hockey Week Across America
23: 2019 Coors Lite NHL Stadium Series: Pittsburgh Penguins at Philadelphia Flyers (Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, PA)
25: 2019 NHL Trade Deadline (3 p.m. ET)
March 2019:
4-6: NHL General Managers Meeting (Boca Raton, Florida)
29-31: NCAA Regionals
April 2019
6: Last Day of the Regular 2018-19 Season
10: Stanley Cup Playoffs Begin
11-13: NCAA Frozen Four (KeyBank Center, Buffalo, N.Y.)
Week of 15: NHL Central Scouting Final Rankings release
18-28: IIHF Under-18 World Championship (Örnsköldsvik/Umeå, Sweden)TBA: 2019 NHL Draft Lottery
May 2019
10-26: IIHF World Championship (Bratislava/Košice, Slovakia)
17-26: 2019 CHL Memorial Cup (Scotiabank Centre, Halifax, N.S.)
27-June 1: 2019 NHL Scouting Combine (Buffalo, N.Y.)
June 2019
1: Last possible day of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final
5: Deadline for player elected salary arbitration notification (5 p.m. ET)
6: Deadline for team elected salary arbitration notification (5 p.m. ET)
20-Aug. 4: Salary arbitration hearings held
July 2019
1: Free agency begins (12 p.m. ET)
