Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers won't close out the Saddledome against the Calgary Flames next season.
The NHL dropped its 2026-2027 schedule Thursday, and the reaction out of Alberta was immediate.
Oilers Daily, a popular fan account covering the team, pointed out the oversight in blunt terms on social media.
The account noted the final game ever played at the Saddledome is not a Battle of Alberta matchup.
It also flagged something bigger. Not one weekend date all season pits the Oilers against the Flames.
An arena finale and hockey's biggest Canadian rivalry usually get primetime treatment together. Not this time.
I for one am shocked that the last game at the Saddledome isn't a Battle of Alberta game.
Also, not one weekend Battle of Alberta game. The NHL continues to not know how to make a good schedule.
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McDavid put up 138 points last season, 48 goals and 90 assists across 82 games, numbers that make every Oilers game appointment viewing regardless of opponent.
Oilers and Flames lose their marquee weekend spotlight
Oilers Daily put it bluntly. The NHL continues to not know how to make a good schedule.
The Flames finished last season 34-39-9 for 77 points. The Oilers finished 41-30-11 for 93 points, 14th overall in the league.
Edmonton dropped three of its four meetings with Calgary this season, including a shootout loss in October and back-to-back defeats in December and February.
So the rivalry still has plenty of juice on the ice. How does a league that markets rivalries this hard miss its splashiest one on a building's biggest night?
Mike Babcock takes over behind the Oilers bench this season, hired in June, and inherits a roster that already knows how tight these Alberta games get.
Ryan Huska remains behind the Calgary bench as the Flames try to close out the Saddledome era on a decent note.
Burying a Battle of Alberta game on a Tuesday instead of a Saturday is like scheduling a heavyweight title fight for a Wednesday matinee.
This is a bad scheduling call, plain and simple, from a league office that talks constantly about growing its Canadian markets.
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Whether the NHL ever slots this rivalry into a weekend audiences can actually plan around remains an open question.
Is the NHL wrong to leave the Oilers-Flames rivalry off the weekend schedule?
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