It's been a busy summer for the Nashville Predators.
After hiring Chris MacFarland to replace Barry Trotz as general manager on June 2, the Predators made seven trades, acquired seven players and hired three front office executives. The moves, headlined by adding centers Mavrik Bourque and Jack Drury, indicate a push to remain competitive heading into the 2026-27 season.
"We're just going to focus on us, focus on how we can get better," MacFarland said on July 1. "Even if it's just a little bit better with each move we make . . . we're going to try to find some competitive guys that can still find a way to win hockey games."
Roman Josi, Filip Forsberg, Ryan O'Reilly, Steven Stamkos and Juuse Saros are among the returning starters for Nashville.
Andrew Brunette is returning as coach, entering his fourth season behind the bench.
When does the Nashville Predators season start?
Rookie camp opens on Sept. 11, followed by full training camp on Sept. 16. The Predators have a four-game slate of preseason games, beginning on Sept. 20:
- Sept. 20 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (4 p.m. CT, Benchmark International Arena)
- Sept. 22 vs Tampa Bay Lightning (7 p.m. CT, Bridgestone Arena)
- Sept. 24 @ Carolina Hurricanes (6 p.m. CT, First Horizon Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina)
- Sept. 26 vs Carolina Hurricanes (2 p.m. CT, Bridgestone Arena)
The Predators' season opener is Oct. 1 against the Minnesota Wild at Bridgestone Arena.
How to watch Nashville Predators games this season
On April 4, the Predators and Scripps Sports announced a multi-year deal that will bring free, over-the-air televised Predators games in the broadcast region. All non-nationally televised games will air on WNPX (Ch. 28), which is now called "The Spot."
Cable and satellite providers that carry "The Spot" include Comcast Xfinity, AT&T and DIRECTV. According to Scripps Sports, there are ongoing negotiations for streaming services (e.g., YouTubeTV) to carry the channel, but nothing has materialized yet.
There also will be a direct-to-consumer streaming experience, where fans can live stream games throughout the local broadcast territory (Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi and Georgia). Details on the streaming service will be made at a later date.
Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at jdaugherty@gannett.com, follow him on X at@alexdaugherty1 or check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: When does the Nashville Predators season start? How to watch the 2026-27 season
