Sunday’s five-game NHL slate runs from an Original Six matinee in Chicago to a late-night homecoming in Vancouver, with Winnipeg’s outdoor showcase supplying the biggest backdrop. The Jets will meet the Montreal Canadiens in the 2026 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic at Princess Auto Stadium, where the building will be dressed as a rustic Canadian cottage, complete with a working fireplace.
Montreal arrives in Winnipeg at 5-3-2 and has taken points in five of its last six outings, going 4-1-1 over that stretch. The Jets are 4-3-3 and enter a new chapter after trading goaltender Connor Hellebuyck to the New Jersey Devils on Friday. Goalie Nico Daws and center Dawson Mercer, both acquired in that deal, could make their Winnipeg debuts under the open sky. Ella Bright, known for “Off Campus,” will handle a Ticketmaster-presented first-intermission feature, with performances from Remi Wolf, Wolf Parade, Feist and G Flip. Puck drop is 7 p.m. ET, with TVAS, SN, TNT, truTV and HBO MAX carrying the game.
Quinn Hughes will step into a familiar rink when the Minnesota Wild visit the Vancouver Canucks at 10 p.m. ET. The 27-year-old defenseman built his NHL reputation in Vancouver, posting 61 goals and 371 assists in 459 games from his March 28, 2019 debut through Dec. 11, 2025. He remains the Canucks’ highest-scoring defenseman and won the Norris Trophy in 2024. Hughes also wore the captain’s “C” from Sept. 11, 2023 until his Dec. 12, 2025 trade to Minnesota.
Now with the 7-3-2 Wild, Hughes has 67 points in 60 games, including two goals and 12 assists in 12 games this season. His only prior meeting with Vancouver came April 2, when he collected an assist in Minnesota’s 5-1 victory. The Canucks, at 2-9-1, will be looking to spoil the return.
At American Airlines Center, Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer has another teenage scoring milestone within reach when New York visits Dallas at 6 p.m. ET. The 19-year-old has scored 24 goals in 92 NHL games. One more would move him beyond Bobby Orr for second place among teenage defensemen in League history, while also lifting him past Tim Connolly and John Tavares for third on the Islanders’ teenage goal list. Phil Housley’s record of 46 goals by a teenage defenseman remains the larger target for Schaefer, who has the rest of the season to chase it. The Islanders are 5-3-2; Dallas is 6-3-1.
Chicago center Connor Bedard is also one goal away from climbing a club age-group list. Bedard, 21, has 77 goals in 223 games for the Blackhawks and can move ahead of Alex DeBrincat for sixth among Chicago players aged 21 or younger. After offseason shoulder surgery, he has two goals in four games this season for the 3-7-0 Blackhawks. Jeremy Roenick holds the franchise benchmark with 111 goals in that category. Chicago hosts the 5-4-2 Florida Panthers at 3 p.m. ET.
Florida forward Carter Verhaeghe is expected to play his 500th NHL game. The 31-year-old appeared in 52 games for Tampa Bay in 2019-20, then signed a two-year Panthers contract on Oct. 9, 2020. Since arriving in Florida, he has produced 169 goals and 183 assists in 447 games.
Colorado’s trip to Nashville at 8 p.m. ET features Nathan MacKinnon coming off a four-point night in Friday’s 6-3 win over Tampa Bay. MacKinnon had a goal and three assists in that game and enters Sunday with 20 points, seven goals and 13 assists, through 11 games. That ranks fourth in the NHL.
If MacKinnon records three assists against the 3-3-4 Predators, it would be the 46th three-assist game of his career. He would move past Joe Sakic in Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques history, tie Peter Forsberg for second and sit one game behind Peter Stastny for the franchise lead. Nashville’s Steven Stamkos carries a milestone chase of his own: his 244 power-play goals leave him two shy of Phil Esposito for sixth all-time in NHL history.
The full Sunday schedule opens with Panthers-Blackhawks at 3 p.m. ET on CHSN, SCRIPPS, SN and TVAS. Islanders-Stars follows at 6 p.m. ET on Prime Video and MSGSN, Canadiens-Jets starts at 7 p.m. ET, Avalanche-Predators begins at 8 p.m. ET on SCRIPPS and ALT, and Wild-Canucks closes the night at 10 p.m. ET on SN, MINNHL and Wild+.
