With the state of the National Hockey League in complete disarray due to the lockout, the league was forced to cancel preseason games through Sept. 30 on Wednesday afternoon.
For the Red Wings, this means four upcoming games are already scrapped from the schedule, including a pair of games with the Chicago Blackhawks. In addition to home dates with Chicago on Sept. 27 and Washington on Sept. 30, Detroit will no longer make the trip to Pittsburgh on Sept. 26 or back to Chicago on Sept. 28.
While this news might be disconcerting to fans hoping for a last-ditch agreement between the two sides on a new CBA, this looks to be just the beginning of a messy few months as key games and opponents are wiped clean from the league schedule. Even though no regular season games have been axed as of yet, things are starting to look bleak for hockey this fall.
Stay with this StoryStream for more lockout coverage involving the Red Wings, and be sure to visit Winging It In Motown for more Detroit hockey news. Also head over to SB Nation's NHL hub for more coverage from around the league.