Welcome to the NHL Global Series: Pittsburgh vs Nashville
At a Glance
Overview of the Global Series
The NHL Global Series is an umbrella term for the regular-season games of the NHL played outside North America. It is part of the NHL's initiative to expand live NHL games to global markets to grow the sport, connect with international fans, and reinforce hockey’s status as a global entertainment product.
In practice, the Global Series means that one or more NHL teams travel overseas and play one or two regular-season games in a venue outside of North America (e.g., Germany, Finland, Sweden, Czechia). For example:
- In the 2024-25 NHL season the Global Series kicked off the season when the Buffalo Sabres and the New Jersey Devils played at the O2 Arena in Prague, Czechia.
- The 2025 edition will feature the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Nashville Predators in Stockholm, Sweden, on November 14 & 16.
However, these are not just exhibition games; they count as regular-season games, with points on the line, stats that count toward the regular season, and active rosters.
Yeah, it's serious.
Expanding NHL Globally
The NHL Stadium Series have lifted the game into a new audience, but the NHL Global Series is one of the coolest things the league’s done to grow the game. Hockey is traditionally a North American sport, but the fanbase—and the talent pool—are way more global now. Sweden alone makes up nearly 10% of NHL players, so it makes sense that the league’s taking the show overseas. Here's a snapshot of the top countries that feed the NHL in 2025.
These games let fans in Europe see their favorite players up close, while the NHL gets to build its brand in new markets. It’s not just about tickets or merch either—it’s about giving hockey a bigger global stage.
And then there’s the vibe. Playing in places like Prague or Stockholm gives these matchups a totally different energy. Players talk about how much fun it is, how it’s something they’ll remember for life.
For fans and creators, it’s a goldmine of stories—travel, culture, homegrown heroes, and those once-in-a-lifetime moments. On top of that, the data around these games tells its own story; for example, the attendance numbers, viewership numbers in Europe, and new insights into how hockey’s spreading worldwide.
What the Data Says
The NHL’s Global Series isn’t just about marketing; the data shows how hockey is expanding its borders. Since the league began taking regular-season games abroad, the numbers have steadily grown. The following chart shows the number of overseas games per year (since 1997), revealing how hockey’s “global footprint” has expanded from a few isolated games to a consistent international schedule.
By 2025, 48 games will have been played outside North America, including 20 in Europe since 2017 across Sweden, Finland, and Czechia. The numbers show that this is not an experiment; it’s a long-term strategy to bring the NHL to new markets.
Beyond the ice, the numbers also show that fans are responding. In key European markets, viewership during Global Series weekends is up 827% in Sweden, 670% in Finland, and 248% in Germany compared to standard games. That’s not just local buzz; it’s a sign of how these events drive engagement and grow the audience for the sport outside of traditional markets.
And when it comes to live attendance, the energy in those arenas speaks for itself. The 2024 games in Prague drew 16,722 and 16,913 fans, nearly a sellout, and overall league attendance for the 2024–25 season topped 23 million, a new record. By comparing attendance at the Global Series games to each team’s typical home crowd—or plotting capacity percentages—you can see that overseas fans are filling seats just as passionately.
Team Matchup
With all of the pomp and circumstance, the question of how these two teams will fare in the 2025 Global Series remains. And if the standings and data speak to the result, the series will likely go to Pittsburgh.
As of this writing, Pittsburgh are in third place with a Point Percentage of .656 compared to Nashville, who are in thirtieth place with a Point Percentage of .438. When you start drilling into more detailed data, you begin to see similar deltas. For example, the below shows Win Ratio, Win Probability and Balance (a metric we use to understand how a team is performing across specific dimensions). On Wins vs Losses, Pittsburgh is up by 27% and on Win Probability the Penguins are up by 28%.
On Balance, Pittsburgh are stronger in all categories except on Physicality, where Nashville are about 16 points higher. While the two teams are closer in certain areas within Special Teams, there's still a delta – especially on the power play.
And finally, when it comes to offense, Pittsburgh has more firepower up front with the bulk of the top-performing centers playing for the Penguins.
Now could Nashville take a game? Anything can happen. One aspect of the Global Series is the impact of international travel on the players – be it jetlag, sickness, and so on. For instance, Charest et al found in their analysis of seven years of NHL game data that "results suggest that circadian change, in both direction, and greater traveled distance can negatively impact NHL athletes." Given both teams are travelling a similar distance, this may be a wash – but as hockey analysts we should consider all variables big or small.
Either way, it's going to be fun!
Summary
The NHL Global Series offers an exciting story of expansion for the sport. For those of us who grew up watching Hockey Night in Canada fondly remember learning the sport from Peter Puck through the glow of our old TVs.
Since this time, the NHL has come a long way, as has the sport of hockey. With leagues growing all over the world – both men and women, the NHL Global Series is a reminder that the sport of hockey is not just a North American phenomenon. The NHL is global.
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