PREVIEW: Red Wings conclude 2025-26 season at Panthers on Wednesday

SUNRISE, FLA. -- The Detroit Red Wings will conclude their 2025-26 season with an Atlantic Division matchup against the two-time defending Stanley-Cup champion Florida Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena on Wednesday night.

“It’s tough to win in March and April,” Emmitt Finnie said. “It’s desperation at that time. I feel like every team puts their playoff mentality into that. For next year, I think we’re going to have to do a better job down the stretch of finding ways to win games.”

Puck drop between Detroit (41-30-10; 92 points) and Florida (39-38-4; 82 points) -- neither qualified for the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs -- is set for 7 p.m., with broadcast coverage on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit and the Red Wings Radio Network (97.1 The Ticket in Detroit). The Red Wings are 1-2-0 against the Panthers this season, their lone victory by way of a 4-1 score at Little Caesars Arena on Oct. 15.

“It’s about ending the season on a good note and especially with a win,” Carter Mazur said. “Four of us are still going to head down to Grand Rapids and hopefully play for the [Calder Cup] down there, so we need to get ready for that as well.”

At Benchmark International Arena on Monday, the Red Wings fought back from a two-goal third-period deficit in an eventual 4-3 overtime decision to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Detroit’s penultimate clash of the season included Patrick Kane’s 1,400th career NHL point, which came when the veteran forward set up Alex DeBrincat’s team-leading 41st goal in the final frame.

“We’ll have some health things that we have to look at before the game,” Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan said when asked about potential lineup changes from Monday’s road-trip opener. “Gibby’s going to play tonight.”

The Panthers will finish this season with over 500 man-games lost due to injury and, regardless of how Wednesday’s clash goes, seventh place in the Atlantic Division standings. On Monday, they extended their home-ice winning streak to three straight contests with a 3-2 victory over the New York Rangers.

Despite not having played since March 12 due to an undisclosed injury, Sam Reinhart still leads Florida in both goals (29) and points (61). Captain Matthew Tkachuk, who scored a hat trick in his club’s 3-1 win against Detroit at Little Caesars Arena on March 6, is set to return to the lineup following a one-game absence for the birth of his first child. In net, Daniil Tarasov is 12-15-3 with a 3.12 goals-against average and .893 save percentage across 30 starts.

“I want them to play hard and be competitive,” McLellan said of his players. “It’s as simple as that.”