GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Grand Rapids Griffins on Thursday announced their schedule for the 2026-27 American Hockey League season. It will mark the franchise’s 31st campaign overall, 26th as a member of the AHL, and 25th as the primary affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings. 

Under fourth-year head coach Dan Watson, the Griffins will begin a 72-game schedule when they travel to Rocket Arena to face the Cleveland Monsters on Friday, Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. Grand Rapids will return to Van Andel Arena for Opening Night presented by Huntington Bank on Friday, Oct. 9 when it welcomes the Manitoba Moose. Oct. 2 represents the second-earliest season opener in franchise history (Oct. 1, 1999 at Detroit), while Oct. 9 will mark the Griffins’ earliest home opener in nine years (Oct. 6, 2017 vs. Manitoba).

This year’s schedule is comprised of 54 contests against Central Division rivals, 14 games against the North Division and four outings against the Pacific Division. The Griffins will play four games against the Hamilton Hammers, who will compete in their inaugural season, while the reigning Calder Cup champions, the Toronto Marlies, are once again featured on the schedule. The Colorado Eagles, who reached last year’s Western Conference Finals, also return to the slate of games after a one-year hiatus. 

Grand Rapids will begin the campaign on the road for the second straight season, which hasn’t happened since a run of three straight road season openers from 2018 to 2020. The schedule includes a season-high five-game homestand from Jan. 9-20 and two four-game home stretches from Oct. 18-24 and Jan. 31-Feb. 12. The Griffins will embark on a season-high six-game road trip from Feb. 15-24. The slate also features 15 back-to-backs and five three-in-threes.

“On the heels of last year’s exhilarating and record-breaking campaign, we can’t wait to see what’s in store for our milestone 25th season of affiliation with the Detroit Red Wings,” said Griffins president Tim Gortsema. “As we take aim at a fourth-straight playoff berth under head coach Dan Watson, we’re excited to have another great core of talented prospects that will continue to develop in Grand Rapids while chasing their NHL dreams.”

Highlights of the 2026-27 schedule include:

• Twenty prime home dates (12 Fridays and eight Saturdays) out of 36 games;
• The first-ever meetings against the Hamilton Hammers, who will embark on their inaugural season. The Griffins have never played an affiliate of the New York Islanders. Grand Rapids will host Hamilton for two games on Jan. 15-16 before heading to the TD Coliseum on Feb. 19-20. Grand Rapids showed a 40-35-1-0-4 record against the former Hamilton Bulldogs, who competed in the AHL from 1996-06;
• The Colorado Eagles, who reached last year’s Western Conference Finals, return to the schedule after a one-year hiatus;
• The Griffins will play a combined 10 games against reigning Calder Cup Champion Toronto (2) and runner-up Chicago (8);
• Seven of 10 games in January at home, six of 10 contests in October at home, and 10 of 12 games at home from Jan. 9-Feb. 12;
• A season-high five-game homestand from Jan. 9-20 and two four-game homestands from Oct. 18-24 and Jan. 31-Feb. 12;
• Five Sunday home games, which are the most since the 2010-11 season (6);
• The Griffins’ 29th annual New Year’s Eve celebration versus the Milwaukee Admirals on Thursday, Dec. 31 (6 p.m. start), in addition to playing on Veterans Day (Nov. 11 vs. Rockford) and the day after Thanksgiving (Nov. 27 vs. Iowa);
• Grand Rapids’ 25th annual School Day Game against the Rockford IceHogs on Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 11 a.m.;
• Fan Appreciation Night presented by Huntington Bank on April 3 versus the Colorado Eagles. 

Fans can secure their full-season, select-season or group ticket packages by calling (616) 774-4585 ext. 2 or visit griffinshockey.com for more information. Single-game tickets for the Griffins’ 2026-27 season will go on sale to the public later this summer through griffinshockey.com/tickets. Be sure to sign up to receive the Griffins Nation newsletters to be the first to know when tickets go on sale.

Season Opener: Fri., Oct. 2 at Cleveland Monsters 
Home Opener: Fri., Oct. 9 vs. Manitoba Moose
Home Finale: Sat., April 3 vs. Colorado Eagles 
Season Finale: Sun., April 11 at Manitoba Moose

By Conference
Western – 58 (29 home, 29 road), Eastern – 14 (7 home, 7 road)

By Division
Central – 54 (27 home, 27 road), North – 14 (7 home, 7 road), Pacific – 4 (2 home, 2 road)

By Opponent
Iowa, Milwaukee, Rockford – 10 (5 home, 5 road)
Chicago, Cleveland, Manitoba, Texas – 8 (4 home, 4 road)
Colorado, Hamilton – 4 (2 home, 2 road)
Toronto – 2 (1 home, 1 road)

By Day (Home)
Friday – 12, Wednesday – 10, Saturday – 8, Sunday – 5, Thursday – 1 

By Day (Road)
Saturday – 13, Sunday – 10, Friday – 6, Wednesday and Tuesday – 3, Monday – 1 

By Month (Home)
January and March – 7, November and October – 6, December and February – 4, April – 2

By Month (Road)
November – 8, December, February and March – 6, October – 4, April and January – 3

Longest Homestand
5 games: Jan. 9-20

Longest Road Trip
6 games: Feb. 15-24

Three Games in Three Nights
Five times: Oct. 9-11, Dec. 18-20, Jan. 29-31, March 19-21, April 2-4