It's Thursday, which means the NHL has a massive slate of games for fans to consume. This week there are 10 contests around the league, including six beginning at 7 p.m. ET.
From those six through to Toronto Maple Leafs-Vegas Golden Knights (with a 10 p.m. opening puck drop), here's a look at the key stats and storylines in each contest, along with betting info on broadcast details:
Odds are provided by DraftKings and subject to change.
Philadelphia Flyers at Ottawa Senators
7 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | OTT -142, O/U: 5.5
Both of these teams made the playoffs last season -- and one of them looks like it will be right back in the mix again. Led by Tim Stutzle, the Senators look like the real deal and almost appear as though the clean break from Brady Tkachuk this summer was a wise move from management. The Flyers, on the other hand, have yet to earn a win this season, and their -12 goal differential is second worst in the league -- ahead of only the Flames, who are assuredly in rebuilding mode. Does the tide turn on Thursday? Full preview
7 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | UTA -118, O/U: 5.5
The Mammoth burst onto the scene last year by earning the first playoff berth in franchise history and taking the eventual conference champion Golden Knights to six games in the first round. After some impressive performances in the first week of 2026-27, they've done nothing but gather support for their claim as a true contender. The next stop is in Boston, where the Bruins have had an uneven start: wins over the Rangers and Jets were followed by bad losses to the Wild and Senators. Which version of the B's shows up? Full preview
Dallas Stars at Buffalo Sabres
7 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | BUF -115, O/U: 5.5
The appearance of the Stars on the schedule brings about bad memories about 1999 for many Sabres fans, although several key members of the current roster weren't born when Brett Hull's controversial goal won the title for Dallas. As currently constructed, both of these teams should find their way back to the postseason this spring -- and perhaps another matchup in the Stanley Cup Final. Full preview
Nashville Predators at Montreal Canadiens
7 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | MTL -185, O/U: 6.5
Each team brings a 1-1-1 record to this showdown, although fans of one of the teams are probably a lot less happy about that mark than the other's. In addition to the identical records, both teams have been driven by their stars so far. Steven Stamkos is the Preds' leading scorer, with three goals and one assist, while Nick Suzuki leads the way for the Habs with two goals and four assists. Full preview
Minnesota Wild at Tampa Bay Lightning
7 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | TB -148, O/U: 5.5
In the possible future world where these two clubs meet in the 2027 Stanley Cup Final, fans will have to look back to the early season for evidence of how they performed against one another. After this tilt, the pair will square off in Minnesota on Nov. 7, and then that's that. How likely is that Cup Final matchup? Stathletes projects it as having a 1.79% chance, which is 12th highest (Avalanche-Lightning currently leads the projections, at 7.17%). Full preview
Vancouver Canucks at Carolina Hurricanes
7 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | CAR -325, O/U: 6.5
From one of the more likely Cup Final matchups to one of the least likely; the defending champs welcome the team that finished dead last in 2025-26. However, the Canucks haven't been the easy out that they were last season, with two wins in four games (and a one-goal loss to the Golden Knights). Carolina's Sebastian Aho was kept off the scoresheet in Game 1, but has four goals and three assists combined in the team's next three games. Does he stay hot in this one? Full preview
Chicago Blackhawks at New York Islanders
7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | NYI -185, O/U: 5.5
Had Connor Bedard not injured himself this offseason, this would have been a fun showdown between two of the game's most exciting young players. Instead, it'll just be Isles D-man Matthew Schaefer in the spotlight, as he continues to build on his impressive rookie campaign. And, as consolation, the Blackhawks do have a current rookie leading them in scoring, 2025's No. 3 pick Anton Frondell, with a goal and three assists through four games. Full preview
San Jose Sharks at St. Louis Blues
8 p.m. ET (ESPN+/Disney+/Hulu) | STL -130, O/U: 5.5
Last season, both the Sharks and Blues missed the final Western wild-card spot by four points. Ahead of opening puck drop, the Sharks are the current possessors of that wild card in the Western standings, with the Blues two points back. The good news for St. Louis fans: The team has 81 games remaining to make up that gap. Thus far, the Blues have been led in scoring by two offseason additions -- Connor McMichael and Mason McTavish -- while San Jose has been paced by Macklin Celebrini, who missed the recent loss to the Stars and is listed as "day-to-day" on the injury report. Full preview
Colorado Avalanche at Calgary Flames
9 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | COL -218, O/U: 6.5
Another game with lopsided expectations (as evidenced by that DraftKings line). Perhaps the simplest way to demonstrate: The Avs are averaging seven goals per game; at their current pace, the Flames won't score seven goals total until Game No. 7 this season. The Avs are allowing 2.5 goals per game; the Flames allow that many every 28 minutes. In other words, fantasy managers will want to be sure all of their Avs are in the active lineup -- even beyond the no-brainers like Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Martin Necas. Full preview
Toronto Maple Leafs at Vegas Golden Knights
10 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | VGK -162, O/U: 6.5
Maple Leafs-Golden Knights games last season took on added emphasis due to Mitch Marner's departure from Toronto to Vegas in summer 2025. That's less of a storyline this season; instead, this game will be another good litmus test for the Leafs as they push for a playoff return after last season's disappointment. This is not one of the more likely Cup Final matchups -- Stathletes projects it as a 0.02% chance -- but that number would assuredly rise if the Leafs keeping winning. Vegas' Jack Eichel leads all NHL scorers heading into Thursday, with 10 points through four games. Full preview
Reminder: Fans can catch all the action in the NHL streaming hub and on the ESPN App.
Jump ahead:
Top NHL stories
Last night's scores
NHL stats leaders
Today in hockey history
Top stories around the NHL
Here's what you need to know:
Why NHL expansion to Houston makes too much sense
NHL Rank: Who are the top 100 players for 2026-27? And what do NHL execs think of our list?
The top NCAA hockey teams to watch for high-end NHL prospects
No. 1 pick Gavin McKenna netted his first NHL goal in the Maple Leafs' 5-4 win Tuesday.
Two days after returning, Brad Marchand exited the Panthers' game against L.A. with a left leg injury.
Islanders defenseman Alexander Romanov will miss six to eight months after tearing his ACL against the Rangers Tuesday.
Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov will not need surgery, and is expected to miss six to eight weeks.
Alex Ovechkin has announced the 2026-27 season will be his last in the NHL.
The Flyers signed Michael Bunting in order to jumpstart their anemic offense.
Wednesday's scoreboard
Washington Capitals 5, Pittsburgh Penguins 3
Winnipeg Jets 3, Colorado Avalanche 2
Edmonton Oilers 5, Anaheim Ducks 2
NHL scoring leaders
Click here for full list of stats leaders.
NHL goaltending leaders
Click here for the full list of goaltender stats.
Today in hockey history
New hockey fans -- and maybe some veteran ones too -- might wonder why Florida Panthers fans throw plastic rats on the ice after home games.
ESPN's Kristen Shilton explored the origin of the tradition in this story, best summarized by this paragraph:
"During the opening game of the 1995-96 season, forward Scott Mellanby had to kill a rat with his stick prior to puck drop that night, then he went out and scored two goals in the Panthers' 4-3 victory over Calgary. Goaltender John Vanbiesbrouck joked after the game that Mellanby's accomplishment constituted a 'rat trick' and so the season became known as the Year of the Rat."
That fateful game was played on this date 31 years ago -- and Panthers fans are still keeping the tradition alive.