NY Rangers' Home Opener and Season Opener Announced for 2026-27 Season

Who will the New York Rangers be playing in their home opener and season opener this coming season?

Mar 16, 2025; New York, New York, USA; A New York Rangers flag is seen in the crown during the first period against the Edmonton Oilers at Madison Square Garden. / IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The New York Rangers have been one of the busiest teams in the league this offseason, and now it will be about preparing for the start of the 2026-27 campaign. 

Coming into the summer, the Rangers were a team that was focused on trying to improve and get better for the upcoming season. After missing the playoffs for two straight years, the team had a desire to improve. 

That is certainly something that they were able to accomplish with a plethora of moves this offseason. As a result, the roster is looking completely different for New York, and after last year, that will be a good thing. 

With the team struggling so much, there were a few notable areas that they wanted to improve this summer. Adding Pavel Dorofeyev from the Vegas Golden Knights in a draft night trade was the biggest splash of the offseason. 

The talented 25-year-old is coming off a 37-goal season, and that is the second straight year he was able to eclipse the 30-goal mark. Furthermore, with a need for more help defensively, they also added Sean Durzi and Marcus Pettersson. 

This duo will be the most likely second-pair on the blueline, and that group looks much better. Now, with the season switching to 84 games, the campaign will be getting underway sooner rather than later. For New York, they now know where they will be opening the season. 

First Two Games Announced for Rangers 

#NYR open the 2026-27 season at Boston on Sept. 29. Home opener is set for Oct. 1 against the Lightning.

— Mollie Walker (@MollieeWalkerr) July 15, 2026

To kick things off in the 2026-27 campaign, the New York Rangers will be on the road facing the Boston Bruins on September 29th. That will be opening night for the league, and the battle between the two Original Six teams is slated to be on ESPN at 8:00 PM EST. 

This will be a good early test for New York on the road, with the Bruins being a playoff team last year. 

Furthermore, while the Rangers will be in hostile territory to open the season, their home opener is scheduled for October 1st against the Tampa Bay Lightning. 

Like the Bruins, the Lightning were a playoff team in the Eastern Conference last season. New York will certainly be looking to get off a better start at home than they did last year. 

With two games to start the year against playoff teams from last season, the Rangers will be tested early, and it will be interesting to see how they perform.