The league announced the full NLL schedule for the 2025-2026 season on Friday, with the league set to begin in November for the second straight year. 

The full schedule can be found here. 

Fans won’t have to wait long to see the new Toronto rivalry between the Rock and the newly minted Oshawa Firewolves. The two teams will meet on Friday November 28 and will be the only game of the opening night.

The Firewolves ownership and coaching staff alluded to this rivalry being a natural one during their introductory press conference, and the schedule announcement pushes that to the forefront. 

The Rock will look for improvement against Ontario rivals, after going 0-2 against the Black Bears last year. Their last victory against an Ontario team was against the Ottawa Rebel on February 7, 2003. 

It’s the second straight November start for the NLL, with American Thanksgiving weekend becoming the common start-date for the league and its teams. With this year kicking off one day earlier than last season, it will be the earliest start date to the season since the 2002 season, when the league kicked off on November 16, 2001. 

It will be a relatively light start to the season for most teams, with just six games total in the first two weekends. Week three will include seven games on its own, including the first game for Rochester, Vegas, and Philadelphia.

Speaking of the Knighthawks, the Seneca Nation have their first home game as team owners on December 20, when they welcome in the Philadelphia Wings.

Of course, the NLL schedule is conditional upon the signing of a new CBA agreement, which remains an issue for the league and players association. No statement has been made recently about negotiations, but the schedule officially puts the league and Union on the clock to get a deal done. 

The NLL schedule also confirms that the unified standings are back for another season, with each team playing each other at least once. The first two years of the unified standings were generally considered a success from the league, with dramatic tie-break scenarios providing fans with plenty of compelling storylines late in the season. For a reminder of just how hectic is can be late in the season, check out our article last season on the scenarios in the final weekends. 

Fans will have to wait awhile to see the rematch of the 2025 finals, with Saskatchewan heading to Buffalo on March 28, in what could well be another matchup with standings implications for the playoffs. 

Stay tuned for more information in the lead up to the season!

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