Hockey is back. Well, technically it's been back for a few months if you're counting the grueling regular season grind, but looking back at the Red Wings preseason schedule for this 2025-26 centennial season, it’s clear that those eight games in September and October set a massive tone.
Honestly, preseason is usually just a way for veterans to knock off the rust and for us fans to see which prospects are actually ready for the big show. But this year felt different. Maybe it was the "Centennial" patch on the jerseys. Or maybe it was just the sheer volume of games—eight in total—squeezed into a tiny window that forced Steve Yzerman and the coaching staff to make some brutal decisions early on.
The Chaos of the September Slate
The schedule kicked off on Tuesday, September 23, with a home game against the Chicago Blackhawks. If you weren't at Little Caesars Arena, you likely caught the stream on the team's website. Detroit took that one 3-2. But the real madness started right after.
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Imagine playing three games in three days. That's exactly what they did.
They hosted Buffalo on Thursday the 25th, then hopped a plane to Pittsburgh for a Friday night tilt, then turned around for a Saturday matinee in Buffalo. It was a gauntlet. You've got guys like Michael Brandsegg-Nygård and Marco Kasper trying to prove they belong while their legs are basically made of lead by the third period in KeyBank Center.
The results were a mixed bag—a 5-2 win against the Sabres at home followed by two losses on the road—but that's not really the point. Preseason isn't about the standings. It's about seeing if a guy like Carter Mazur, who looked absolutely ripped coming into camp, can maintain that energy when the schedule gets stupidly crowded.
Breaking Down the Red Wings Preseason Schedule
If you're looking for the hard data on how those weeks played out, here is the breakdown of the matchups. Note that the schedule was heavily weighted toward home-and-home sets against regional rivals.
- Sept 21: Red & White Game at Van Andel Arena (The unofficial kickoff in Grand Rapids).
- Sept 23: vs. Chicago Blackhawks (LCA) — Result: 3-2 Win.
- Sept 25: vs. Buffalo Sabres (LCA) — Result: 5-2 Win.
- Sept 26: at Pittsburgh Penguins (PPG Paints Arena) — Result: 3-2 Loss.
- Sept 27: at Buffalo Sabres (KeyBank Center) — Result: 5-2 Loss.
- Sept 29: vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (LCA) — Result: 2-1 Loss.
- Sept 30: at Chicago Blackhawks (United Center) — Result: 3-1 Win.
- Oct 2: at Toronto Maple Leafs (Scotiabank Arena) — Result: 3-1 Win.
- Oct 4: vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (LCA) — Result: 6-5 Win.
That final game against Toronto? Absolute track meet. A 6-5 thriller at home to close out the preseason with a 5-3-0 record. It was exactly the kind of momentum they needed before the regular season opener against Montreal.
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Where to Watch and Listen
For those who were trying to keep up with the Red Wings preseason schedule from their couch, FanDuel Sports Network (formerly Bally Sports) handled the heavy lifting for the televised games, specifically the ones later in the slate against Pittsburgh and Toronto.
Radio fans had to flip between WWJ Newsradio 950 for the early games and 97.1 The Ticket for the high-profile matchups. It’s kinda nostalgic, honestly—listening to Ken Kal call a preseason game while you’re stuck in Woodward traffic.
Roster Battles and the Traverse City Factor
Before the first puck even dropped at LCA, the team spent their usual time up north. Training camp at Centre ICE Arena in Traverse City (Sept 18-20) is where the real work happens. This year, the focus was squarely on the "Yzerplan" graduates.
We saw Nate Danielson and Shai Buium unfortunately hit the "injured non-roster" list early, which cleared some path for other guys. Sebastian Cossa got some looks in net, but eventually, the team leaned on the veteran duo of Cam Talbot and the newly acquired John Gibson.
The biggest shock? Probably the October 3rd cuts. Just one day before the preseason finale, the Wings sent Carter Mazur down to Grand Rapids. People were frustrated. Mazur had been "exceptional," to use the common scout lingo, and even scored the first goal of the preseason. But the numbers game is a beast. With veterans like James van Riemsdyk and Patrick Kane taking up top-nine spots, there just wasn't a seat left at the table for the kids yet.
Lessons from the Exhibition Season
What did we actually learn?
First, the power play looked surprisingly crisp during those two Toronto games. Having Alex DeBrincat and Lucas Raymond on the wings with Moritz Seider at the point is a cheat code when it's clicking.
Second, the defensive depth is... complicated. Bringing in guys like Travis Hamonic and Jacob Bernard-Docker provided "NHL experience," but it also created a logjam that kept younger prospects like William Wallinder in the AHL for a bit longer.
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Lastly, the centennial season pressure is real. You could feel it in the building during that final Saturday night game against the Leafs. The fans weren't just there for a meaningless exhibition; they were there to see if this roster had the teeth to finally break the playoff drought.
Actionable Insights for Fans
If you're tracking the team's progress based on their preseason performance, here's how to use that info:
- Watch the Griffins: If a player like Carter Mazur or Marco Kasper had a huge preseason but got sent down, keep a close eye on their AHL stats. They are usually the first ones called up when the inevitable November injuries hit.
- Evaluate the "Heavy" Schedule: The Wings often struggle on the back end of back-to-back games. Looking at how they handled the three-games-in-three-days stretch in September gives a good preview of how they’ll handle the compact regular season schedule in February and March.
- Check the Streaming Quality: If you're planning for next year, remember that many preseason games are only on DetroitRedWings.com. Ensure your setup can handle a web-to-TV cast so you aren't squinting at a laptop.
The Red Wings preseason schedule might be over, but the ripples from those games are still being felt as the team pushes through the 2026 calendar year. Whether it’s line chemistry or goaltending rotations, it all started in those "meaningless" games in September.
To stay ahead of the curve, monitor the daily roster moves on the official NHL transaction wire, as the fringe players who stood out in September are often the same ones shuffled between Detroit and Grand Rapids to manage the salary cap throughout the winter.