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Avalanche Most Nationally Televised of 2025-26 NHL Season

The Colorado Avalanche will play in 17 nationally televised contests during the 2025-2026 season, the most of any team in the NHL.

Jacob Punturi

Mar 16, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (29) and defenseman Cale Makar (8) in the second period against the Dallas Stars at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
Mar 16, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (29) and defenseman Cale Makar (8) in the second period against the Dallas Stars at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images / Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
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If you want to see a lot of the Colorado Avalanche during the 2025-2026 NHL season, you got your wish. The league released their national television schedule for the upcoming year, and it heavily features the 2022 Stanley Cup champions.

The Avalanche will play in 17 nationally televised contests during the 2025-2026 season, the most of any team in the NHL. They will play nine of those games on ABC/ESPN and the other eight will be broadcasted on TNT. The Avs will begin their nationally televised slate with an October 7th matchup against the Los Angeles Kings on ESPN.

Of the 17 games, there are two that stick out as huge potential matchups, and both come late in the regular season schedule. On March 18th, the Avs will take on division rivals the Dallas Stars on TNT. Just a couple weeks later, the two squads will run things back on April 4th on ABC. These two organizations are bitter rivals already in the Central Division, but things reached the next level when they met in the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Stars won the series, but it was one of the most entertaining and well-played series from this past postseason. With two nationally televised games coming at the end of the 2025-26 season, it’s sure to be a fiery affair.

Hockey players celebrate a goal
May 3, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Colorado Avalanche defenseman Josh Manson (42) skates past his teammates after he scores a a short-handed goal against the Dallas Stars during the second period in game seven of the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The NHL are smart to have the Avalanche on national television so much. The Avs have two of the best players in the entire league with Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar. The 29-year-old MacKinnon is in his prime and dominating the NHL. He’s surpassed 100 points in three consecutive seasons and is coming off a 116-point campaign in 2024-2025.

Makar has been equally as impressive over that span. The superstar defenseman has reached or exceed 85 points in three of the last four seasons. Last year, he won the second Norris Trophy of his career as the NHL’s best defenseman. He recorded 30 goals and 92 points in 80 games while averaging over 25 minutes of ice time. It was one of the most impressive statistical seasons ever recorded by an NHL defenseman, and he heads into the upcoming year ready to strike again.

With two MVP players on the roster in their prime, the Avalanche are once again one of the top contenders for the Stanley Cup. That’s why they are on national television an NHL-leading 17 times this season.

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Jacob Punturi
JACOB PUNTURI

Jacob is a featured writer covering the Pittsburgh Steelers for Steelers On SI and the NHL for Breakaway On SI. He also co-hosts the All Steelers Talk podcast. Previous work covering the NHL for Inside the Penguins and The Hockey News.

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