The Bruins are headed for a heavy dose of national attention next season.
When the NHL released its U.S. television schedule on Wednesday, Boston landed 20 appearances across ESPN, ABC and TNT for the 2026-27 season, putting the club front and center on some of the league’s biggest broadcast windows.
The Bruins’ first national stage comes right out of the gate. They open the season on September 29 as part of an ESPN tripleheader, hosting the New York Rangers at 8:00 PM. From there, Boston gets four ESPN dates, including three straight Tuesdays, before making its first TNT appearance against Viktor Arvidsson and the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday, November 18.
TNT also gets a major Bruins moment on December 1, when Patrice Bergeron’s retirement ceremony is televised nationally. NESN will carry it locally in the Boston market, while TNT handles the national broadcast.
The TNT slate continues into the new year. Boston’s first meeting with the Buffalo Sabres is set for January 5, and TNT will also have a second Bruins game late in the season. In total, the network is lined up for a significant chunk of the schedule.
ABC will be another frequent stop after the New Year, with five Bruins games on ABC Hockey Saturday. That stretch begins January 16 against the New York Rangers and closes with back-to-back weekends against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Here’s how the national schedule breaks down, with all times Eastern:
September
Tuesday, Sept. 29: vs. NY Rangers, 8:00 PM (ESPN)
October
Tuesday, Oct. 13: at San Jose, 11:00 PM (ESPN/NESN*)
Tuesday, Oct. 20: at Dallas, 8:00 PM (ESPN)
Tuesday, Oct. 27: at Carolina, 8:00 PM (ESPN)
November
Wednesday, Nov. 18: at Detroit, 7:30 PM (TNT)
December
Tuesday, Dec. 1: vs. Colorado, 7:30 PM (TNT/NESN*)
Tuesday, Dec. 15: vs. Florida, 7:00 PM (TNT)
January
Tuesday, Jan. 5: vs. Buffalo, 7:30 PM (TNT)
Wednesday, Jan. 6: at Montreal, 7:30 PM (TNT)
Saturday, Jan. 16: at NY Rangers, 12:00 PM (ABC)
Monday, Jan. 18: vs. Tampa Bay, 1:30 PM (TNT)
February
Wednesday, Feb. 10: at Toronto, 7:30 PM (TNT)
Thursday, Feb. 25: vs. Washington, 8:00 PM (ESPN)
Saturday, Feb. 27: vs. Detroit, 12:30 PM (ABC)
March
Saturday, March 6: vs. Pittsburgh, 12:30 PM (ABC)
Thursday, March 11: at Pittsburgh, 7:30 PM (TNT)
Monday, March 15: vs. NY Islanders, 7:00 PM (ESPN)
April
Saturday, April 3: vs. Tampa Bay, 3:00 PM (ABC)
Wednesday, April 7: at Buffalo, 7:30 PM (TNT)
Saturday, April 10: at Tampa Bay, 8:00 PM (ABC)
NESN will handle the rest of the Bruins’ local television broadcasts, and 98.5 The Sports Hub will carry every game on the radio.
The team also revealed updated start times for six games. That list includes the February 15 home game against Anaheim, now set for 2:00 PM, plus the February 27 matchup with Detroit, the March 6 game against Pittsburgh, the March 11 road game in Pittsburgh, and the April 1 visit to Buffalo, which has been moved to 7:00 PM.
In Other News...
Bruins Get An Early Warning Sign About Where This Team Is Headed
An early look at the 2027 draft picture is not exactly flattering for the Bruins, and it serves as a reminder of how quickly the leagues outlook can shift. The projection has Boston trending toward the bottom third of the NHL, which would mean a missed postseason and a first-round selection that carries more weight than the team would like this far out.
Bostons situation gets a little more interesting because of the draft asset coming back from Toronto, since the Maple Leafs are still expected to be on a different path. If those forecasts hold, the Bruins would be sitting on two first-rounders with very different values, a setup that says plenty about where each organization is headed even before either season has really taken shape. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Draft History Still Haunts Fans For One Painful Reason
Draft history has a way of lingering in Boston, especially when a team keeps running into the same old frustration of what might have been. A review of the Bruins five worst draft classes over the last 30 years puts that issue in sharp focus, pointing to years such as 2021, 2015, 2000 and 1996, where the results fell well short of the opportunities on the board.
The uncomfortable part for Bruins fans is that this is not just ancient history buried in old scouting reports. Missed swings and poor value picks have stacked up across multiple eras, and the list of regrettable classes includes a pair from the current front office era, which only keeps the debate alive about how much of Bostons roster-building pain has come from the draft table rather than the ice. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Fans Will Have A Few Road Games To Circle Early
The NHL has already given Bruins fans a few dates to circle for the 2026-27 season, with the league unveiling Bostons national television slate and a schedule that should keep plenty of eyes on the club early and often. The Bruins are set for 20 games on TNT, ESPN and ABC, while the rest of their regular-season action will be carried by NESN, and the first batch of intriguing road trips comes quickly with an early-October swing through California.
There are storylines packed into the calendar beyond the usual division race and playoff chase, too. A November stop in Detroit and a late-season trip to Florida stand out on a schedule that already feels built for big-market attention, and the Bruins will also get a March visit to Washington that carries its own weight. For a team trying to stay in the national conversation, it is a road map full of familiar pressure points and a few games that could end up meaning a lot more than they look like in August. [Read more 🡒]