The Detroit Red Wings’ 2021-22 schedule features a home opener on Oct. 14 against the defending Stanley Cup champions, a traditional New Year’s Eve date, and a break for the 2022 Winter Olympics.
The Tampa Bay Lightning will be at Little Caesars Arena Oct. 14 to ring in the new season. The Washington Capitals come on Dec. 31 to ring in the new year.
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The Wings get their first look at the expansion Seattle Kraken on Dec. 1. The first big road trip spans Nov. 15-20 and has stops in Columbus, Dallas, Vegas and Arizona. With a 21-day pause in February for the Olympic Games, the finale isn’t until April 29, at New Jersey.
It’s a nice return to normalcy after last season. The pandemic forced the NHL to make numerous concessions: The schedule was reduced to 56 games, and teams were limited to opponents within geographically realigned divisions.
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For the Wings that meant facing the Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators and Tampa Bay Lightning eight times apiece. To limit traveling, teams generally played one another in two-game mini-series, though the Wings and Stars had two mini-series bakc-to-back in April.
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“We’ve all been working to get back towards closer to normal is great,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “To be in a spot where we can have a normal schedule is great. I think to be able to see more than the divisional teams is a great thing.”
Red Wings 2021-22 schedule
Thursday, Oct. 14: Tampa Bay
Saturday, Oct. 16: Vancouver
Tuesday, Oct. 19: Columbus
Thursday, Oct. 21: Calgary
Saturday, Oct. 23: At Montreal
Sunday, Oct. 24: At Chicago
Wednesday, Oct. 27: At Washington
Friday, Oct. 29: Florida
Saturday, Oct. 30: At Toronto
Tuesday, Nov. 2: At Montreal
Thursday, Nov. 4: At Boston
Saturday, Nov. 6: At Buffalo
Sunday, Nov. 7: Vegas
Tuesday, Nov. 9: Edmonton
Thursday, Nov. 11: Washington
Saturday, Nov. 13: Montreal
Monday, Nov. 15: At Columbus
Tuesday, Nov. 16: At Dallas
Thursday, Nov. 18: At Vegas
Saturday, Nov. 20: At Arizona
Wednesday, Nov. 24: St. Louis
Saturday, Nov. 27: Buffalo
Tuesday, Nov. 30: At Boston
Wednesday, Dec. 1: Seattle
Saturday, Dec. 4: N.Y. Islanders
Tuesday, Dec. 7: Nashville
Thursday, Dec. 9: At St. Louis
Friday, Dec. 10: At Colorado
Tuesday, Dec. 14: N.Y. Islanders
Thursday, Dec. 16: At Carolina
Saturday, Dec. 18: New Jersey
Monday, Dec. 20: Colorado
Thursday, Dec. 23: At Minnesota
Monday, Dec. 27: At N.Y. Rangers
Wednesday, Dec. 29: At N.Y. Islanders
Friday, Dec. 31: Washington
Sunday, Jan. 2: Boston
Tuesday, Jan. 4: San Jose
Thursday, Jan. 6: At Anaheim
Saturday, Jan. 8: At Los Angeles
Tuesday, Jan. 11: At San Jose
Thursday, Jan. 13: Winnipeg
Saturday, Jan. 15: Buffalo
Monday, Jan. 17: At Buffalo
Tuesday, Jan. 18: At Philadelphia
Friday, Jan. 21: Dallas
Saturday, Jan. 22: At Nashville
Wednesday, Jan. 26: Chicago
Friday, Jan. 28: At Pittsburgh
Saturday, Jan. 29: Toronto
Monday, Jan. 31: Anaheim
Wednesday, Feb. 2: Los Angeles
Wednesday, Feb. 23: Philadelphia
Saturday, Feb. 26: At Toronto
Tuesday, March 1: Carolina
Friday, March 4: At Tampa Bay
Saturday, March 5: At Florida
Tuesday, March 8: Arizona
Thursday, March 10: Minnesota
Saturday, March 12: At Calgary
Tuesday, March 15: At Edmonton
Thursday, March 17: At Vancouver
Saturday, March 19: At Seattle
Tuesday, March 22: Philadelphia
Saturday, March 26: Tampa Bay
Sunday, March 27: At Pittsburgh
Wednesday, March 30: N.Y. Rangers
Friday, April 1: Ottawa
Sunday, April 3: At Ottawa
Tuesday, April 5: Boston
Wednesday, April 6: At Winnipeg
Saturday, April 9: Columbus
Tuesday, April 12: Ottawa
Thursday, April 14: At Carolina
Saturday, April 16: At N.Y. Rangers
Sunday, April 17: Florida
Tuesday, April 19: At Tampa Bay
Thursday, April 21: At Florida
Saturday, April 23: Pittsburgh
Sunday, April 24: At New Jersey
Tuesday, April 26: Toronto
Friday, April 29: At New Jersey
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.