​The NHL on Thursday released the 2026-27 schedule, moving to an 84-game regular season for the first time. It will be jam-packed with events — the Heritage Classic between the Montreal Canadiens and Winnipeg Jets and the Winter Classic between the Utah Mammoth and Colorado Avalanche, among other highlights.The Chicago Blackhawks will have one special event next season: the 2026 NHL Global Series on Dec. 18 and 20 versus the Ottawa Senators at the PSD Bank Dome in Düsseldorf, Germany. The Hawks pushed up the start times for their home games to 7 p.m. from 7:30, with weekend games beginning at 6 p.m. or earlier.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThey’ll also have two seven-game homestands — from Oct. 10-27 and Feb. 17-March 1.How will the Hawks perform in the month without star Connor Bedard? What former Hawks will visit the United Center? Where will the Hawks be at season’s end?Here are eight games to watch in 2026-27.The Hawks will open their season on the road for the ninth straight year when they visit T-Mobile Arena.Bedard won’t play in the game — or for the first month minimum — as he heals from left shoulder surgery. The contest will be the Hawks’ first test without the center.Frank Nazar, 22, and Anton Frondell, 19, likely will be the first- and second-line centers at the season’s start, giving them a chance to ease into their elevated roles early. It’ll be a big day for wing Roman Kantserov, 21, who is expected to make his NHL debut against the Golden Knights.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe Golden Knights haven’t been friendly to the Hawks since their debut in 2017-18, holding a 17-3-4 edge in the all-time series, along with a 4-1 first-round series win in the 2020 playoffs.Defenseman Bowen Byram won’t have to wait long for a return to his former stadium. He’ll do so in his third game with the Hawks in the Sabres’ home opener.Bryam, 25, signed a six year, $75 million extension on July 1, making him the highest-paid defenseman in the NHL. He’s thankful for his time in Buffalo but is excited for his newest chapter.“They’ve shown a lot of faith in me, they’ve given up a lot and committed to me in many, many ways,” Byram said about the trade. “Now the ball is in my court to perform, so I’m excited for that opportunity.”AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementByram will step into a top-defenseman role, a position that wasn’t available to him in Buffalo, hence the trade to the Hawks.The Sabres made light work of the Hawks in their pair of meetings in 2025-26. The first was a 9-3 drubbing at the KeyBank Center and the other a 5-1 rout at the United Center.Leafs left wing Gavin McKenna, the 2026 No. 1 pick, will make his first trip to Chicago to face his cousin Bedard — if the Hawks star is back from injury. The 18-year-old McKenna will use what he learned from No. 98 in one of his first big-time NHL games.“We’ve gone through similar things with media and the pressure,” McKenna t