New York Rangers Release 2025-26 Regular Season Schedule

It's become a tradition in the NHL for teams to find fun and creative ways to promote their new season's schedules. This year, the Buffalo Sabres created a chicken wing dish for each team; the Pittsburgh Penguins made a parody of HBO Max's The Pitt; and the Vancouver Canucks recreated NHL '25's gameplay with bbno$ as their spokesperson (for anyone who doesn't know who that is, don't ask).

So, what did the New York Rangers do to commemorate their 100th year as a franchise?

Nothing, of course. It's the New York Rangers. We don't have fun here.

Opening Night is set for Oct. 7 at Madison Square Garden against the Pittsburgh Penguins. It's a classic rematch between the two noted rivals, but probably a welcome reprieve for the Blueshirts to start this year off with an easier opponent. The two teams are actually in a similar place, if you think about it—rebuilding but in complete denial about said rebuilding. This match is also one of three opening night games for the entire league, so at the very least, we will hear the ESPN broadcast fail to pronounce Urho Vaakanainen's name two-to-four times.

Naturally everyone's fixated on the Blueshirts' divorce tour around the NHL. It seemed like Sam Rosen was forced to say "one-time Ranger..." once a game last season, and that trend is only going to continue for Kenny Albert after the trades and departures of this summer. The team will see Zac Jones on Oct. 9 as they visit the Sabres upstate; the Canucks are swinging by with Filip Chytil, Victor Mancini, and a lot of unresolved locker room tension on Oct. 28; the newly reunited Kaapo Kakko and Ryan Lindgren will take the ice in Seattle on Nov. 1; K'Andre Miller will return to the Garden on Nov. 4 with the Carolina Hurricanes; and the messiest reunion of the season will take place on Dec. 15 as Jacob Trouba, Chris Kreider, and the Anaheim Ducks visit New York in time for the holidays. Nothing puts you in the Christmas spirit like deep-seated familial strife.

The travel schedule is frontloaded before the Olympic break in February, which in theory should give the Blueshirts the advantage if they have to fight for a playoff spot in April yet again. In practice, the team had a 19-19-3 home record and a 20-17-3 away record in 2024-25, so that benefit remains to be seen.

April ends like most seasons for the past few years—in Florida. The Rangers close out the 2025-26 season on the road as they visit Dallas, Sunrise, Tampa Bay. Surely playing strong playoff contenders, including the reigning back-to-back Stanley Cup Champions, down the stretch won't negatively impact this floundering team's Wild Card chances? Right?

You can find the full New York Rangers schedule for their centennial season here.