The Blue Jackets’ 2025-26 schedule is out, and it’s a doozy.
Thanks to the NHL’s return to Olympic competition in February, every team’s schedule is packed with games before and after the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Games on Feb. 6-22.
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More: Columbus Blue Jackets 2025-26 schedule opens at Nashville Predators, Minnesota Wild
For the Blue Jackets, that means 15 sets of back-to-backs, three more than last season, plus months featuring 14-16 games. It’s going to be daunting for all 32 teams, but especially a Blue Jackets bunch targeting a return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2020.
Here’s a closer look with five things to know about the Blue Jackets’ 2024-25 schedule:
There’s nothing like diving right into the deep end of the pool, right?
That’s what the Blue Jackets will do after opening the season Oct. 9 in Nashville against the Predators, a fellow 2024-25 playoff non-qualifier. The schedule gets significantly more challenging in a hurry with seven of the Jackets’ first 10 games against teams that did reach the postseason, plus 14 of their first 25 games through October and November are on the road.
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Nine of 15 games in November are road matchups, including a season-long five-game road trip that starts Nov. 2 at the New York Islanders and includes the annual Western Canada swing through Calgary (Nov. 5), Vancouver (Nov. 8) and Edmonton (Nov. 10) before concluding Nov. 11 in Seattle.
Winnipeg Jets center Vladislav Namestnikov (7) ends up in the net against Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins (90) during the second period at Nationwide Arena on November 1, 2024 in Columbus, Ohio. At left is Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Mathieu Olivier (24).
Playing back-to-back games has been one of the Blue Jackets’ biggest stumbling blocks the past five years, including last season’s 8-14-2 record in 24 games played as part of 12 back-to-backs and a 9-14-3 overall mark in 13 back-to-backs in 2023-24.
The first of this season’s 15 back-to-backs is Oct. 24-25. Columbus hosts the Washington Capitals at Nationwide Arena, then makes a trip to Pittsburgh’s PPG Paints Arena the next night.
The Jackets also end October and start November with split back-to-backs. They play on the road Oct. 28 in Buffalo and host Toronto on Oct. 29, then play the St. Louis Blues on Nov. 1 in Columbus before facing the New York Islanders Nov. 2 at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.
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November features another odd back-to-back set Nov. 17 against the Montreal Canadiens at Nationwide Arena and Nov. 18 in Winnipeg. On the positive side, the Jackets get two home/home back-to-backs Jan. 3-4 against Buffalo and Pittsburgh, plus March 28-29 against San Jose and Boston.
Jan 7, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins (90) defends the net against Pittsburgh Penguins right wing Bryan Rust (17) during the first period at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Columbus Blue Jackets will be home for the holidays
The Blue Jackets typically hold a practice on Thanksgiving. It will be interesting to see if that tradition continues this year with games on either side of the U.S. holiday, which is Nov. 27, 2025.
The Jackets are set to host the Maple Leafs on Nov. 26 before coming out of the holiday Nov. 28 against the Penguins. A month later, they’ll return from the NHL’s break for Christmas with a home game Dec. 28 against the Islanders.
Fans watch the New Year’s Eve fireworks show after the game between the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Carolina Hurricanes at Nationwide Arena on Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2024 in Columbus, Ohio.
Columbus Blue Jackets to host the New Jersey Devils on New Year’s Eve
It doesn’t happen every season, but it’s usually memorable when the Blue Jackets play on New Year’s Eve at Nationwide Arena. One of the most memorable games in the franchise’s recent history was Dec. 31, 2019, when then-rookie Elvis Merzlikins bested former Blue Jackets star goalie Sergei Bobrovsky in the Blue Jackets’ 4-1 victory over the Florida Panthers.
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Zach Werenski took care of the offense, netting his first NHL hat trick against Bobrovsky almost six months after the net-minder signed with the Panthers on July 1, 2019. This time, the Blue Jackets host the Devils in what could be a key in-season matchup within the Metropolitan Division. Columbus finished just two points behind New Jersey for third place in the Metro last season.
Oct 22, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets players salute the fans following the 6-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL hockey game at Nationwide Arena.
Columbus Blue Jackets to get some home cooking in January and March
The NHL’s schedulers made up for the Blue Jackets’ tough road slate in the first two months by allotting a preponderance of home games in January and March.
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They’ll play nine out of 16 games each month at Nationwide Arena, including a season-long, five-game homestand Jan. 20-28 plus three separate three-game homestands in March. The four games scheduled around the Olympics in February are split evenly between road and home games.
Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins (90) sprays water on his helmet in the second period at Nationwide Arena on Thursday, April 3, 2025 in Columbus, Ohio.
Columbus Blue Jackets to play 68% of games on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays
The Blue Jackets will play 17 games each on Tuesdays and Thursdays plus 22 games on Sundays.
According to the Blue Jackets, they have a combined 464-499-134 record on those three days, notching 1,062 points out of 2,194 possible for a .484 all-time points percentage. Out of those days, they’re most successful on Thursdays at 147-127-40 all-time for a .532 points percentage.
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The Blue Jackets 135-153-44 all-time on Tuesdays and 182-219-50 on Saturdays. Notable home Thursday dates include Oct. 16 against the Colorado Avalanche, Nov. 13 against the Edmonton Oilers, Dec. 4 against the Detroit Red Wings, Jan. 22 against the Dallas Stars, March 5 against the Florida Panthers and March 19 against the New York Rangers.
Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets schedule: 5 things to know about 2025-26 season