For brand marketers, an open patch is an opportunity only if the plan is ready when the slot moves.

SponsorUnited’s 2025–26 NHL Sponsorship Intelligence Report identified Columbus and Dallas among the teams with jersey patch openings. Both entered the 2026–27 season with new partners. One week into the season, their deals offer a timely lesson for brands watching the league’s most visible sponsorship inventory.

In the three weeks leading up to opening night, six teams—the Blue Jackets, Ducks, Sharks, Penguins, Red Wings and Stars—announced new uniform placements. Columbus’s Blue Jackets moved Bread Financial from its home helmets to its jerseys. Dallas’ Stars named Acrisure its first home jersey patch partner. Detroit’s Red Wings added DQS Solutions & Staffing to both home and away jerseys. On helmets, Anaheim’s Ducks added Disneyland Resort, San Jose Sharks signed Aven for home games, and Pittsburgh’s Penguins brought in U.S. Steel.

Other agreements extended the story beyond that September rush. Buffalo’s Sabres announced Stark Tech for away jerseys in May and Seneca Resorts & Casinos for home jerseys in June. After the season began, New Jersey’s Devils named Prudential their first away jersey patch partner and put Prudential’s asset management business, PGIM, on away helmets.

The announcements reflect two routes onto the uniform. Aven and DQS gained prominent team placements, while Bread Financial, Disneyland Resort, Seneca, and Prudential expanded existing relationships. An open slot does not necessarily go to a brand entering the team for the first time.

Premium Asset Sponsors Making Moves

SponsorUnited’s 2025–26 NHL Sponsorship Intelligence Report found active primary jersey patches on 28 of 32 teams. Financial services and healthcare were prominent among patch partners, and Columbus and Dallas were identified as remaining opportunities. Both clubs announced new partners before this season began.

For brand marketers, that sequence matters. A list of open patches is a snapshot, and an existing team partner may already be on a path to the jersey. Case in point, Bread Financial moved from Columbus’s home helmet to its game jerseys. If a brand waits for an opening to be announced before deciding which teams fit its goals, what the placement is worth and how it would use the rights, another partner may be ready to move.

The preparation is specific: prioritize teams and markets, decide whether home, away or all-game exposure best serves the brand, and build an activation plan beyond the logo. A jersey patch can deliver repeated visibility; its value to the brand depends on what happens around it—in content, community programs, hospitality and customer engagement.

Why the Timing Matters

NHL team sponsorship revenue reached an estimated $1.7 billion in 2025–26, up 9.7% year over year. The league recorded 3,162 team deals across 2,218 unique brands, while average deal size climbed 11.4% to $529,000. Deal volume held steady even as spending rose, putting a premium on the value of each agreement.

It is too early to measure the return on this season’s uniform deals. But the opening-night rush makes one point clear for brand marketers: When a coveted placement opens, the brand that already knows why it wants that team—and how it will activate the deal—can make the strongest case.