After Tuesday's games, four weeks of the 2026-27 NHL season will be in the books, and the schedule ahead promises even more surprises. The Hurricanes sit atop the Metro, while the Bruins are surprisingly tops in the Atlantic. The two teams meet in Tuesday's marquee matchup at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN, but 10 other games deserve attention too.
The early headline belongs to the Columbus Blue Jackets at the Philadelphia Flyers, where no one predicted both teams would be at the bottom of the Metro this late. Columbus has played just nine games, which offers some grace. Philadelphia has been fueled by Matvei Michkov, who leads the team in points with eight goals and two assists. Columbus enters off an overtime win over Vegas, with Adam Fantilli scoring the winner.
Boston and Carolina share a long history, dating back to 1979-80, when the Canes were still the Hartford Whalers. The Bruins hold a 115-80-24 regular-season edge over Hartford and Carolina and lead 26-16 in the postseason. Both clubs boast a top-10 scorer in Sebastian Aho and David Pastrnak, plus a top-10 save percentage leader in Pyotr Kochetkov and Jeremy Swayman. Carolina is favored at -192.
Elsewhere, the Los Angeles Kings visit the Chicago Blackhawks, with a reunion of former linemates Artemi Panarin and Patrick Kane. Chicago has been boosted by the return of Connor Bedard, while the Kings have won two straight. Montreal faces St. Louis without captain Nick Suzuki, who is recovering from an upper-body injury, and the Blues remain undefeated against Canadian teams. The New York Islanders visit Nashville, where the Predators are 2-0-1 when scoring three or more goals, and the Islanders allow just 2.55 goals per game. Finally, the New Jersey Devils visit the Dallas Stars, where Jake Oettinger has posted a 1.43 goals-against average and .930 save percentage.
Source: ESPN NHL · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing