The Ottawa Senators visit the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, with puck drop set for 7:00 PM EDT.
Matchup: Ottawa Senators (2-0-0, 4 points in 2026-27) at Detroit Red Wings (0-2-0, 0 points in 2026-27)
Date: Tuesday, October 6, 2026
Puck drop: 7:00 PM EDT
Venue: Little Caesars Arena
How to watch: DET: DSN · OTT: TSN5, RDS2
Purchase tickets via Ticketmaster
Ottawa Senators News & Notes
Ottawa’s summer was defined by the departure of captain Brady Tkachuk, who was sent to Florida in exchange for three first-round picks and a second-rounder. The Senators also added William Eklund, a left wing coming off his second straight 50-point season, much of it produced without Macklin Celebrini driving his line in San Jose. Eklund gives a lineup built around heavy, checking forwards a different element, though replacing Tkachuk’s goal-scoring remains an open question in the top six.
The post-Tkachuk era opened with a win over Toronto on Oct. 3, with Thomas Chabot helping the Senators edge the Maple Leafs. The night came at a cost: Jake Sanderson exited the opener with an apparent injury and was sent back to Ottawa for further testing. Sanderson is expected to miss at least two games, leaving the blue line short of its top minutes-eater early in Travis Green’s season.
Detroit Red Wings News & Notes
Detroit opened the season without a point, dropping a 2-0 decision to the New York Rangers before a 3-2 loss to Winnipeg on Sunday at Little Caesars Arena. The Jets scored three power-play goals, with Kyle Connor and Cole Perfetti each recording three points against John Gibson. Viktor Arvidsson’s deflection was Detroit’s first goal of the season, and Emmitt Finnie cut the margin to one early in the third. Detroit led both games in shots and hits while playing without Dylan Larkin, Marco Kasper and Simon Edvinsson.
The contract standoff with Edvinsson continues. The defenseman entered talks seeking a long-term deal near $10 million annually while the Red Wings pushed a bridge contract, and he has since opened up to the idea of a trade. Edvinsson reported to training camp without a contract and declined offer sheets while Detroit searched for a replacement for Steve Yzerman, eventually naming Shawn Horcoff interim general manager. Larkin, who requested a trade, was booed during introductions before the opener.
Ottawa Senators Projected Lines
Line 1: Warren Foegele – Tim Stützle – Drake Batherson
Line 2: William Eklund – Dylan Cozens – Fabian Zetterlund
Line 3: Michael Amadio – Shane Pinto – Claude Giroux
Line 4: Nick Cousins – Stephen Halliday – Hayden Hodgson
Pair 1: Thomas Chabot – Jordan Spence
Pair 2: Tyler Kleven – Carter Yakemchuk
Pair 3: Nikolas Matinpalo – Cameron Crotty
Goaltenders: Samuel Ersson – Linus Ullmark
Ottawa Senators Special Teams
Power play, First unit: William Eklund – Tim Stützle – Dylan Cozens – Drake Batherson – Thomas Chabot
Power play, Second unit: Claude Giroux – Shane Pinto – Fabian Zetterlund – Carter Yakemchuk – Jordan Spence
Penalty kill, First unit: Shane Pinto – Claude Giroux – Tyler Kleven – Jordan Spence
Penalty kill, Second unit: Tim Stützle – Michael Amadio – Thomas Chabot – Nikolas Matinpalo
Detroit Red Wings Projected Lines
Line 1: Alex DeBrincat – Andrew Copp – Lucas Raymond
Line 2: Viktor Arvidsson – Emmitt Finnie – Michael Brandsegg-Nygård
Line 3: Michael Rasmussen – J.T. Compher – Keegan Kolesar
Line 4: Nate Danielson – Mason Appleton
Pair 1: Albert Johansson – Moritz Seider
Pair 2: Ben Chiarot – Axel Sandin-Pellikka
Pair 3: Anton Johansson – Justin Faulk
Goaltenders: John Gibson – Daniil Tarasov
Detroit Red Wings Special Teams
Power play, First unit: Viktor Arvidsson – Andrew Copp – Lucas Raymond – Alex DeBrincat – Moritz Seider
Power play, Second unit: Michael Rasmussen – Emmitt Finnie – Michael Brandsegg-Nygård – Justin Faulk – Axel Sandin-Pellikka
Penalty kill, First unit: J.T. Compher – Andrew Copp – Albert Johansson – Moritz Seider
Penalty kill, Second unit: Mason Appleton – Michael Rasmussen – Ben Chiarot – Axel Sandin-Pellikka
Players To Watch
Tim Stützle — Ottawa Senators
Stützle poured in two goals and an assist on three shots in 18:56 last time out, so the finishing is already there. The underlying work is less tidy: Box Score Junkie has him at 44.9% Corsi-for and 48.6% Fenwick through the 2026-27 season to date. With a hot shooting touch and modest volume, he’s a points-prop play more than a shots one.
Viktor Arvidsson — Detroit Red Wings
Arvidsson scored on four shots in 21:24 last game, and the process backs it up. Box Score Junkie’s 2026-27 season-to-date numbers have him at 56.0% Corsi-for, 57.6% Fenwick and 74.8 shot attempts for per 60 across 38 minutes, with 1.4 high-danger expected goals generated while he’s on the ice. The shots-on-goal line is worth a look.
Injury Report
Ottawa Senators
Linus Ullmark (G) — Day-To-Day, Undisclosed, expected back Tuesday, October 6
Jake Sanderson (D) — Out, Lower Body, expected back Thursday, October 8
Andre Burakovsky (LW) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Saturday, October 10
Blake Montgomery (LW) — Injured Reserve, Undisclosed, expected back Thursday, October 8
Kurtis MacDermid (LW) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Saturday, October 31
Artem Zub (D) — Injured Reserve, Knee, expected back Saturday, October 10
Detroit Red Wings
Marco Kasper (C) — Day-To-Day, Upper Body, expected back Tuesday, October 6
Dylan Larkin (C) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Tuesday, October 6
Simon Edvinsson (D) — Out, Contract Dispute, expected back Saturday, October 10
Chase Stillman (RW) — Injured Reserve, Undisclosed, expected back Friday, October 9
Carter Bear (LW) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Tuesday, October 6
Jacob Bernard-Docker (D) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Friday, October 9
Next Up
Ottawa Senators: host the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday, October 8.
Detroit Red Wings: host the Seattle Kraken on Friday, October 9.