The Pittsburgh Penguins will play their first road game of 2026 against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena, with the puck dropping at noon Eastern Time. The matchup will be broadcast on ABC, and fans can also listen on 105.9 The X or through the Penguins app.
Pittsburgh holds a record of 18-12-9, while Detroit stands at 24-14-4. The Penguins have earned points in 14 of their last 17 games against Detroit (11-3-3), scoring four or more goals in 12 of those contests. In their last eight visits to Little Caesars Arena, Pittsburgh is 5-3-0 and has picked up points in seven of its past ten road games overall (4-3-3).
Kris Letang recently reached the milestone of playing his 1,200th NHL game, becoming only the third active defenseman to do so and the 40th all-time. “Defenseman Kris Letang was the overtime hero on Thursday night in his 1,200th game, scoring the game-winner to help the Penguins extend their win streak to three games. The tally was Letang’s 13th career overtime goal, which is tied for second in NHL history among defensemen.” Letang now has both of Pittsburgh’s overtime goals this season.
Letang also surpassed Nicklas Lidstrom for fourth-most game-winning goals with one team among defensemen in NHL history and enters Saturday’s contest with four points over his last five games.
Sidney Crosby had a strong performance Thursday as well: “Sidney Crosby was dominant on Thursday, notching a season-high (tied) three points (2G-1A) in the overtime win. It marked Crosby’s fifth multi-goal game this season, which is tied for third in the NHL.” Crosby’s current total of 23 goals ranks him sixth league-wide and second among Eastern Conference skaters.
Erik Karlsson made history by reaching two milestones: “Defenseman Erik Karlsson notched two assists on Thursday, and in doing so, he became the 14th defenseman in NHL history to [reach] 900 points.” He is also just the eighth Swedish-born player—and second Swedish defenseman—to reach that mark.
Rickard Rakell has contributed consistently against Detroit with 21 points across 25 games versus them. Both Karlsson and Rakell were named Friday to Team Sweden for the upcoming Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026; they join captain Sidney Crosby (Team Canada) and goaltender Arturs Silovs (Team Latvia) as Olympians from Pittsburgh.
Connor Clifton is approaching his own milestone—he is one game away from reaching his 400th regular-season appearance after being drafted by Arizona in the fifth round of the 2013 draft. Clifton ranks third on Pittsburgh this year with 63 hits despite appearing in only fifteen games.
The Penguins currently rank second league-wide on power-play percentage at 30.2%. Blake Lizotte has played an important role when dressed; Pittsburgh has earned points in twenty-three out of thirty games he’s appeared in this season.
Crosby could surpass Gordie Howe for ninth-most road points all-time if he registers another point Saturday; he sits at seventy-eight career road points shy of that mark.
Karlsson leads all active defensemen against Detroit with a career average of over one point per game (1.09), while Letang’s average ranks ninth among blueliners who have played at least ten games versus Detroit.
The Pittsburgh Penguins, established as an NHL franchise since 1967, are based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They have won multiple Stanley Cup championships and maintain a significant presence within both local sports culture and international hockey communities through consistent competition and community initiatives. Their operations include youth development programs and engagement efforts designed to make hockey accessible to fans across various platforms.
