The 2026 NHL All-Star Game will not be coming to UBS Arena, the home of the New York Islanders, after all.
Instead, the Belmont Park venue will host an international event a week before the start of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Corina in February, which was further confirmed by the Associated Press on Monday. All signs point to an international competition between Olympic teams that will serve as an exhibition, of sorts, to prepare them for the Games before departing for Italy.
The NHL is attempting to ride the wave of the 4 Nations Face-Off, which saw a surge in the game’s popularity back in February thanks to the rebirth of the international rivalry between the United States and Canada. It prompted NHL commissioner Gary Bettman to cancel the All-Star Game and its weekend of festivities.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul sent a letter to Bettman on Monday, imploring him to “make good” on the canceled All-Star weekend, which was projected to bring “millions of economic activity to the region.”
“While we understand the significance of the Winter Olympics, the conflict was foreseeable and could have been addressed through early coordination,” Hochul’s letter read. “This decision overlooks the efforts by New York State and sends the wrong message to every public entity that has supported the NHL.”
She went on to request that the NHL “bring a hockey event with equal or greater economic activity and cultural value to the region” in 2027.
However, Bettman had already said last week during a meeting with the Associated Press Sports Editors that the league will do “something that’s more focused on a major hockey event” in 2027 at UBS Arena.
The NHL initially announced that UBS Arena would host the 2026 All-Star Game during last February’s Stadium Series game between the Islanders and Rangers at MetLife Stadium. It would have been the first time the team’s venue hosted an All-Star Game since 1983.
