New York Islanders to Host 2026 NHL All-Star Game at UBS Arena

The 2026 NHL All-Star Game will take place at the New York Islanders' UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.

This will be the first All-Star event hosted at UBS Arena, where the Islanders moved in 2021.

"We have been looking forward to UBS Arena playing host to one of our major League events since before construction of this wonderful arena began," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.

The Islanders last hosted the All-Star Game at Nassau Coliseum in 1983. Wayne Gretzky earned his first NHL All-Star MVP Award during the event.

The news was announced on Sunday's ABC broadcast by Islanders alumni and Hockey Hall of Famers Dennis Potvin and Brian Trottier.

Although the dates of the 2026 All-Star weekend have yet to be announced, the event will take place before the 2026 Winter Olympics, which are scheduled to begin in Milan on February 6.

The Games will feature NHL players for the first time since Sochi 2014 thanks to an agreement brokered between the league, the players' association, the International Ice Hockey Federation, and the International Olympic Committee.

Marty Walsh, NHLPA Executive Director, called the upcoming All-Star Game "an exciting lead-in to the 2026 Olympic Winter Games."

The event at UBS Arena will also mark the first NHL All-Star weekend in two years after the league skips the event during the 2024-25 season.

Next season, the All-Star weekend will be replaced by the 2025 NHL 4 Nations Face-Off, which is set to take place from Feb. 12 to Feb. 20. The seven-game tournament will take place in two host cities, one in the United States and one in Canada, that have yet to be announced.

The 2024 NHL All-Star Weekend took place at the Toronto Maple Leafs' Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario from Feb. 1-3 as Mathew Barzal represented the Islanders. The event featured an expanded three-day schedule revamped skills competition designed with input from Connor McDavid.

For the 2026 event, the league is considering "a format with more international emphasis," according to ESPN's Greg Wyshynski.