NHL Tonight: Previewing Canadiens-Blackhawks, Lightning-Avalanche

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  ESPN staffOct 23, 2026, 07:00 AM ET

It's a typically light Friday schedule in the NHL, but both are well worth the watch (for different reasons).

Both games pit interconference foes against one another, so technically either could be a way-too-early Stanley Cup Final preview.

One, as you'll see, is quite a bit more likely than the other.

And the other good news is that none of the four clubs played on Thursday, so everyone should be as fresh as possible.

Here's a look at what you need to know for each of tonight's contests, including betting info and broadcast details:

Odds are provided by DraftKings and subject to change.

Montreal Canadiens at Chicago Blackhawks

8 p.m. ET (NHL Network) | MTL -142, O/U: 6.5

The Blackhawks are not a strong bet to make the Cup Final this season -- or even the playoffs, if public projections are to be believed. But for fans of tradition and/or uniforms, it's hard to beat this Original Six matchup between two of the best jerseys in all of sports.

Specific to this season, this is also a matchup between the No. 1 overall pick from 2022 (Montreal's Juraj Slafkovsky) and 2023 (Chicago's Connor Bedard).

Tampa Bay Lightning at Colorado Avalanche

9 p.m. ET (ESPN+) | COL -125, O/U: 6.5

For the main event on Friday, it's a rematch of the 2022 Cup Final (won by Colorado), and a pairing that has a reasonably strong chance of being contested this coming June. Indeed, this is the No. 1 projected Cup Final matchup, according to Stathletes projections, with a 4.85% chance of occurring.

On the ice, both teams are led up front by a perennial Hart Trophy candidate. Tampa's Nikita Kucherov won the Hart for 2025-26, while Colorado's Nathan MacKinnon was the second runner-up (behind Connor McDavid).

The two teams will meet again on Feb. 13.

Reminder: Fans can catch all the action in the NHL streaming hub and on the ESPN App.

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Today in hockey history

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Here's what you need to know:

• The latest Wysh List column, on the rise in fighting this season.

• Updated Power Rankings, including a fantasy hockey pickup for all 32 teams.

• 'This will be a real fun game': How Brady Tkachuk (and the Senators) prepared for his Ottawa return.

• "It's obviously been crazy... but it's been a lot of fun." That's Dylan Garand to Greg Wyshynski in Monday's feature.

• 6-foot-9 goalie Cooper Black made his debut for the Panthers.

• Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki will be out two to four weeks with an upper-body injury.

• Dylan Larkin has expanded his trade list to 10 teams

• At least three teams are in the mix to trade for Connor Hellebuyck

Thursday's scoreboard

Boston Bruins 6, Nashville Predators 0
Toronto Maple Leafs 5, New York Rangers 4
San Jose Sharks 6, Ottawa Senators 2
New Jersey Devils 4, Anaheim Ducks 1
Pittsburgh Penguins 4, Florida Panthers 0
Los Angeles Kings 3, New York Islanders 2 (OT)
St. Louis Blues 6, Vegas Golden Knights 2
Dallas Stars 3, Winnipeg Jets 2 (OT)
Calgary Flames 2, Minnesota Wild 1
Edmonton Oilers 6, Carolina Hurricanes 5 (SO)
Seattle Kraken 5, Utah Mammoth 3
Detroit Red Wings 5, Vancouver Canucks 2

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Carolina Hurricanes vs. Edmonton Oilers: Game Highlights

NHL scoring leaders

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NHL goaltending leaders

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Today in hockey history

If you took a poll of 100 hockey fans and asked them what team they most associate with Mark Messier, you probably won't get many who respond by saying, "the Vancouver Canucks."

But, he was there for three seasons, and on Oct. 23, 1998, he reached a significant career milestone while wearing a Canucks sweater (albeit one of their least liked).

During the course of a 5-0 win over the Panthers, Messier scored his 600th NHL goal. At the time, there were only 10 members of the 600-goal club, but that list has expanded significantly in the years since.