Rumor: NHL expanding season to 84 games

Currently, the NHL season spans 82 regular season games followed by an expanded playoff before crowning the winner of the Stanley Cup. But there could be two more regular season games added to all that in the near future.

According to a report by ESPN, the NHL and the NHL Players' Association are in negotiations to increase the season to 84 games during their collective bargaining agreement talks.

The move to expand the regular season has been discussed before, but seems to have more of a chance to pass now because of a current imbalance in the schedule. With the addition of two games, the NHL could keep a format that sees every team visit every opponent at least once while division rivals play four times.

To offset adding more games, preseason schedules could be diminished. Of course, players are concerned with added wear and tear on their bodies by playing two more games that matter during the regular season.

The reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers played 23 playoff games. They had a handful of players see action in at least 80 regular season games, meaning they were on the ice for over 100 games this past year.

As of now, the CBA that has the league and the players locked in is set to expire on September 15, 2026.

There was an 84-game schedule from 1992-94 when two neutral site games were added. 

One key reason for the move to two more games for each of the 32 teams in the league would be added revenue. 

In 2023, the NHL brought in a total revenue of $6.8 billion according to a report by Dimers.com. Of that, 44 percent came from ticket sales with 19 percent from television broadcast and media rights, 14 percent from sponsorships and partner, 12 percent from concessions and 11 percent from local media and television deals.