Matthew Schaefer will learn next week if the New York Islanders select him with the first pick for this year’s NHL draft.
The defenseman now knows when he’ll likely start his third season with the Ontario Hockey League franchise that chose him in that same spot.
The Erie Otters released their full 2025-26 regular season schedule on June 16. It begins Sept. 19 at Guelph, followed by their Sept. 20 home opener against the Kitchener Rangers.
The puck drop at Erie Insurance Arena is 7 p.m.
The Otters will return to the rink after a season unlike any other since the franchise moved to northwestern Pennsylvania in 1996. Their 2024-25 team endured the death of owner Jim Waters, the firing of coach Stan Butler amid murky circumstances and the loss of Schaefer and fellow star Carey Terrance to injuries over the season’s second half.
Erie, despite those dire circumstances, still qualified for the OHL playoffs and won a Robertson Cup series for the first time since 2017. The London Knights then eliminated the Otters in the Western Conference semifinals.
London not only repeated as the league’s champion but also won the Memorial Cup as the best team for the entire Canadian Hockey League.
Erie will host the Knights on Sept. 27. It will be the first of six meetings between the Midwest Division rivals.
All Otters’ home games have 7 p.m. starts, with the exception of four.
The Brantford Bulldogs will be Erie’s New Year’s Eve opponent. They’ll face off at 6 p.m.
The Otters will skate earlier than normal on Feb. 5, 2026. They’ll host Guelph in an 11 a.m. start for the elementary school students in the stands.
Erie also has two 4 p.m. matinees late in the season. Owen Sound visits next March 1 and Saginaw on March 8.
Erie Otters’ 2025-26 Ontario Hockey League schedule. Home games at Erie Insurance Arena will start at 7 p.m., unless otherwise noted:
19: at Guelph
20: Kitchener
26: at Kitchener
27: London
2: at Peterborough
4: at Ottawa
5: at Kingston
10: at London
11: Sudbury
17: Niagara
18: at Niagara
19: at Brampton
22: at Sault Ste. Marie
24: at Saginaw
25: at Flint
30: Guelph
1: at Barrie
2: at Owen Sound
7: Ottawa
8: Niagara
13: at North Bay
14: at Sudbury
16: at Oshawa
21: Barrie
22: Sarnia
26: Brampton
29: Peterborough
2: at Kitchener
5: at Owen Sound
6: at Owen Sound
11: Brantford
13: North Bay
19: Sarnia
20: Flint
28: at Kitchener
30: at Brantford
31: Brantford, 6 p.m.
3: Windsor
8: at Windsor
9: at Sarnia
10: at London
16: Windsor
17: Saginaw
23: at Guelph
24: Kitchener
30: Sault Ste. Marie
31: London
5: Guelph, 11 a.m.
6: at Saginaw
7: at Flint
11: Owen Sound
13: at Brantford
14: Flint
16: at Guelph
20: Oshawa
21: Kitchener
26: at Niagara
28: Owen Sound
1: Owen Sound, 4 p.m.
6: at London
7: London
8: Saginaw, 4 p.m.
13: Kingston
14: Niagara
17: at Windsor
18: at Sarnia
21: Guelph
22: at Niagara
Contact Mike Copper at mcopper@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNcopper.
