The new Detroit Red Wings season is fast approaching and what a celebration year it promises to be. Centennial events start October 9 as the club hosts another Original Six rival – the Montreal Canadiens – on opening night at Little Caesars Arena in downtown Detroit.
From new uniforms to a Hockeytown festival to Sergei Fedorov Night, the place will be rocking with nostalgia and a hoped-for return to the Stanley Cup playoffs. It’s been nine consecutive seasons with no post-season games; a sore point for the tremendously large fan base in the state of Michigan and city of Detroit.
Founded in 1926, the team started as the Detroit Cougars until 1930. For two seasons the club was the Detroit Falcons. The name change to Red Wings occurred in 1932 and has remained throughout the years since. A special uniform designed to contain elements of the Cougars, Falcons and Red Wings will debut at the home opener.
The Wings have the most Stanley Cups – 11 – by any American NHL franchise. Only Montreal and Toronto own more. Chicago, Boston, New York comprise the other Original Six clubs. Three primary stadiums have been home: Olympia Stadium at Grand River and McGraw, Joe Louis Arena on the west riverfront adjacent to Huntington Place and LCA, their home since 2017, at Woodward and Temple.
While no playoff games involving the Wings have been held at the new arena, the Wings have been in the running the last two years for a coveted NHL playoff spot. This season could be the charm as fans have consistently supported their team.
November 6-9 will be the official celebration at the MotorCity Casino Hotel. More than 50 DRW alumni and hundreds of fans will be feted. Passionate supporters of the club won’t want to miss this unique hockey celebration according to the team’s marketing staff. Home games against two Original Six clubs – the New York Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks – are during that weekend. Contact the club for ticket packages and events at nhl.com/redwings/.
On the ice, the Wings finally are retiring all-star forward Fedorov’s “Russian Five” jersey (91). He played 13 seasons in Detroit, winning three Stanley Cups, earning two Frank J. Selke awards, a Hart Memorial Trophy and a Ted Lindsay Award. Sergei was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL players in 2017 and took his rightful place in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015. Fans have been anxious to see team management retire his “91.” On January 12, 2026, the Wings host Carolina and Fedorov’s jersey will be lifted to the rafters at LCA.
This year’s club is looking for new energy with several key additions following the dismal finish of 39 wins, 35 losses and 8 overtime losses, good for sixth place in the Atlantic Division. Lucas Raymond led the club in scoring with 80 points on 27 goals and 53 assists.
A mid-season 2024 coaching change came during the Christmas break as club General Manager Steve Yzerman fired Derek Lalonde after a 13-17-4 start. Veteran coach Todd McLellan took over and the team started well after the change only to fail again to grab a playoff berth.
Captain Dylan Larkin (30 goals and 40 assists), Raymond, Alex DeBrincat (39 goals), Patrick Kane (59 points), Moritz Seider (46 points), Marco Kasper (37 points), J.T. Compher (32) and Simon Edvinsson (31) led the charge and are back.
Yzerman signed a new goaltender – 32-year-old John Gibson – who will have Cam Talbot as his backup. Gibson had a solid career with the Anaheim Ducks who drafted him in 2011 as the 39th overall draft pick. He was 11-11-2 with a 2.73 goals against and a .912 saves percentage. Sebastian Cossa is the Wings’ number 3 goaltender and most likely starts the season with the Grand Rapids Griffins, Detroit’s top farm team, where he was 21-15-5 in 2024-25.
Other newcomers are defensemen William Lagesson and Antti Tuomisto and forward Jesse Kiiskinen.
Many promotional giveaways and theme nights comprise the Wings new season such as: rally towels, magnet schedules, bobbleheads, caps, coffee mugs, Grateful Dead jerseys, Margaritaville t-shirts and the most popular Zamboni gravy boats to be given away.
Broadcasters include FanDuel Sports with Ken Daniels, Mickey Redmond, Chris Osgood, Daniella Bruce and WXYT-FM 97.1 The Ticket with Ken Kal and Paul Woods. The Wings have more than a dozen games on national networks TNT, ABC and ESPN.
Eichorn’s prediction: Red Wings earn the 8th and final NHL Eastern Conference playoff berth. Reach George Eichorn at geichorn@yahoo.com or X/Twitter at @Sandgsports99.
