Edmonton remains “on the radar” to host an NHL All-Star Game
By Cam Lewis
5 months agoIt looks like the Edmonton Oilers are among the teams next in line to host an NHL All-Star Game.
The league has mapped out its All-Star Game plans for the next two seasons. In 2025, rather than regular All-Star festivities, the NHL will host the Four Nations Cup, an international tournament featuring players from Canada, Sweden, Finland, and the United States. In 2026, the New York Islanders will host a normal All-Star Weekend at the brand-new UBS Arena right before the NHL goes on pause for the Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy.
After that, a few teams appear to be in the mix to host an All-Star Game. The league’s newest franchise, the Seattle Kraken, will surely be interested in hosting one in the coming years, while Elliotte Friedman mentioned in 32 Thoughts that the Oilers and Detroit Red Wings are two teams with new stadiums who have expressed interest as well.
“I’m curious to see how the NHL uses the 2026 All-Star Game on Long Island as a springboard to the Milan Olympics. Usually, there’s no All-Star during Olympic years when NHLers attend, so this provides opportunity to do something unique.Detroit and Edmonton remain on the radar. Both have beautiful new buildings they wish to show off, both declared interest. When it comes to the Red Wings, there are some projects underway around the arena, and the question becomes, ‘Do we wait until it’s complete?’ With Edmonton, it’s jokes about February weather. But the day will come.”
The Oilers hosted the 1989 All-Star Game, which saw Wayne Gretzky return to Edmonton following the previous summer’s trade to the Los Angeles Kings and lead the Campbell Conference to a 9-5 win. Edmonton also hosted the 1995 NHL Draft at the Northlands Coliseum and has had Heritage Classic Games in 2003 and 2023 at Commonwealth Stadium.
Rogers Place, Edmonton’s new downtown stadium, was opened ahead of the 2016-17 season but the development of the surrounding Ice District isn’t yet complete. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said last year that the league will bring events to Alberta’s capital once everything is wrapped up.
“We’re coming. It’s just a question of timing,” Bettman said. “From the Oilers’ perspective, from the Oilers Entertainment Group perspective, they want the Ice District finished. At that point, they want us to bring the events, and we’re happy to do that.”
Between 2016 and 2023, the NHL held the All-Star Game in Nashville, Los Angeles, Tampa, San Jose, St. Louis, Vegas, and Miami, leading to some speculation that the league favoured having the February event in warm climates. Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand even suggested players would “boycott” the All-Star Game if it was in Edmonton, Detroit, or Seattle, though Bettman brushed those comments aside.
“Everybody has an opinion,” Bettman said. “And opinions are frequently thrown out there as trial balloons. But in the final analysis, I don’t think we would have any trouble hosting a successful All-Star Game here or in any other city we have a team.“What’s wrong with coming up here [to Edmonton] in January? This is a place where hockey matters. Our players love to be in places where hockey matters and I don’t see it to be an issue at all in terms of bringing an All-Star Game here.”
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