The Islanders unveiled their 2025-26 season schedule with a notable change to their home games.
After sticking with a puck drop time of 7:30 p.m. in their first four seasons at UBS Arena, the new default start time for Islanders home games is 7 p.m.
Twenty-six of their 41 home games will begin at that time, while the team also has 10 home contests that will start at 4 p.m. or before, including five at 1 p.m.
The lone 7:30 p.m. start at UBS will come against the Rangers on Jan. 28, which will be the third of four meetings between the two teams before the March 6 trade deadline.
That game is also the first of a back-to-back, home-and-home slate to conclude the Islanders and Rangers regular-season series.
In total, the Isles will have 16 back-to-backs in the 2025-26 season.
Brock Nelson, who was traded to Colorado in March after 12 years on Long Island, returns to UBS Arena with the Avalanche on Dec. 4.
The NHL will then break for the Olympics from Feb. 6-24, which UBS Arena will celebrate with a send-off event scheduled for Feb. 6-8.
Upon return from the international tournament in Milan, Italy, the Islanders will take on Noah Dobson and the Canadiens on Feb. 26 in Montreal.
After he was traded to the Habs for Emil Heineman and the 16th (Victor Eklund) and 17th (Kashawn Aitcheson) picks in last month’s draft, Dobson signed an eight-year, $76 million contract with Montreal.
Dobson, who the Isles drafted 12th overall in 2018, will make his return to the Island in the second-to-last game of the regular season on April 12.
In addition to a six-game home stand from Nov. 22 to Dec. 2, their longest of the season, the Islanders will play 10 of their last 12 games of the regular season at home.
It could be an important stretch in the schedule should the Isles be fighting for playoff position.