Colorado Avalanche Unveil Upcoming Home Opener Opponent
The morning of July 15 saw the NHL unveil all 32 home openers, with the full schedule to be announced the following day on July 16 — for the Colorado Avalanche, they will be hosting the Los Angeles Kings.
Colorado will host the Kings for their coveted opening matchup, who made headlines over the past few months due to acquiring Artemi Panarin from the New York Rangers. The Avalanche will face off against Los Angeles on Sept. 30 at 10 p.m. EST, with Colorado looking to build off their success from the 2025-26 season. In addition, the Avalanche will also be taking on the Utah Mammoth at the upcoming Winter Classic on Dec. 31 at the University of Utah's Rice-Eccles Stadium.
Hockey at home in September? Yes, please. pic.twitter.com/ArVKL4nG0l
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) July 15, 2026
In 2025-26, the Avalanche (the fourth oldest team in the NHL) set a single-season franchise record in points; they won the Central Division and Presidents’ Trophy in addition to advancing to the Western Conference Final.
Last season Colorado also quickly got off to a hot start, which could very well be repeated for 2026-27.
Avalanche Looking to Repeat Hot Start of 2025-26 in Upcoming NHL Season
The Avalanche began their 30th League season without losing in regulation throughout the first eight games while also debuting new jerseys. In addition, in the season's first game Colorado superstar Nathan MacKinnon became the Avalanche’s all-time point leader (1,016) — surpassing Joe Sakic for the most points since the team relocated to Colorado.
Brent Burns would also become just the 23rd player in NHL history to play 1,500 regular-season games during the first month of last year's season.
Colorado would also not lose in regulation throughout Nov., going 11-0-2 while also earning 10 straight victories — including a three-game shutout streak.
Back to 2026-27, the NHL season will officially kick off on Sept. 29 when the Boston Bruins take on the New York Rangers. In addition, the reigning Stanley Cup champions of the Carolina Hurricanes will face off against the Florida Panthers. The Edmonton Oilers are to also host the Vancouver Canucks, with the Toronto Maple Leads to also battle on the ice against the Montreal Canadiens. Finally for opening night, the Vegas Golden Knights will also host the Chicago Blackhawks.
The complete 2026-27 NHL regular-season schedule will be announced as previously referenced on July 16 at 1 p.m. ET, with NHL Network airing a one-hour special edition of "NHL Tonight" and the special edition programming also being available for streaming on NHL.com.
The 2026-27 regular season overall has been expanded to 84 games with the addition of two more divisional contests per team.
Jennifer Streeter graduated with a B.A. in journalism from Texas A&M and received her Master of Science from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. At both schools, she focused on an emphasis of sports reporting. A former athlete herself, "Jenny" was a varsity soccer player and comes from a family who participated in NCAA athletics. She has covered hockey since 2023 and is credentialed for the Seattle Kraken, New Jersey Devils and PWHL in addition to having covered the 2026 Frozen Four.