GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- The puck will drop October 10 on the Grand Rapids Griffins franchise's 30th season.
The team announced its schedule and other information in a news release:
GRIFFINS 2025-26 SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
Season Opener: Fri., Oct. 10 at Texas Stars
Home Opener: Fri., Oct. 17 vs. Manitoba Moose
Home Finale: Sat., April 11 vs. Rockford IceHogs
Season Finale: Sun., April 19 at Cleveland Monsters
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Grand Rapids Griffins on Thursday announced their schedule for the 2025-26 American Hockey League season. It will mark the franchise’s 30th campaign overall, 25th as a member of the AHL, and 24th as the primary affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings.
Under third-year head coach Dan Watson, the Griffins will begin a 72-game schedule when they travel to the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park to face the Texas Stars on Friday, Oct. 10 at 8 p.m. EDT. Grand Rapids will return to Van Andel Arena for Opening Night presented by Huntington Bank on Friday, Oct. 17 when it welcomes the Manitoba Moose.
This year’s schedule is comprised of 56 contests against Central Division rivals, 12 games against the North Division and four outings against the Atlantic Division. The Griffins will compete against the Charlotte Checkers, who reached the 2025 Calder Cup Finals, for the first time since the 2016-17 season. The Toronto Marlies also return to the schedule after a brief one-year hiatus. Grand Rapids will begin the campaign on the road for the first time since the 2020-21 season. The schedule includes two season-high four-game homestands from Feb. 13-20 and Feb. 25-March 4, and a season-high five-game road trip from March 15-26. The slate also features 16 back-to-backs and two three-in-threes.
“We are thrilled to celebrate our 30th anniversary season with our tremendous fans and relive some of the wonderful moments from the past. Throughout the season, fans can expect a walk down memory lane with tons of great promotional items to celebrate our history,” said Griffins president Tim Gortsema. “After having two very successful campaigns the past couple years, we cannot be more excited for what the future holds in head coach Dan Watson’s third season in charge. We will have another great core of exciting Detroit Red Wings prospects that will continue to develop in Grand Rapids and chase their goals of reaching the NHL.”
Highlights of the 2025-26 schedule include:
- Twenty-two prime home dates (14 Fridays and eight Saturdays) out of 36 games;
- The first meetings against the Charlotte Checkers since the 2016-17 season. The Griffins will host Charlotte for two games from Nov. 21-22 before heading to the Bojangles Coliseum to visit the Checkers from Feb. 6-7. The last time Charlotte traveled to Van Andel Arena was April 14, 2017, while the Griffins have not made the trip to Charlotte since Dec. 18, 2016;
- The Toronto Marlies return to the schedule after a one-year hiatus;
- Eight of 13 games in January at home and seven of 11 contests in February at home;
- Two season-high four-game homestands from Feb. 13-20 and Feb. 25-March 4;
- Four Sunday home games, which ties last year’s mark as the most since the 2012-13 season;
- One home game starting at 8 p.m. (March 28 vs. Chicago);
- The Griffins’ 28th annual New Year’s Eve celebration versus the Milwaukee Admirals on Wednesday, Dec. 31 (6 p.m. start), in addition to playing the day after Thanksgiving (Nov. 28 vs. Iowa), the day after New Year’s Day (Jan. 2 vs. Chicago), and two games sandwiched between Valentine’s Day (Feb. 13 & 15 vs. Texas);
- Grand Rapids’ 24th annual School Day Game against the Toronto Marlies on Wednesday, Nov. 12 at 11 a.m.;
- Fan Appreciation Night on April 11 versus the Rockford IceHogs.
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’ 2025-26 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.
Photo: Photo by: Steve Katerberg