The Pittsburgh Penguins will play the first of their eight preseason games on Monday, Sept. 21 at 7 p.m. against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.

Pittsburgh will play its first preseason home game the following night when it hosts another Metropolitan Division rival, the Carolina Hurricanes, at 7 p.m. at CONSOL Energy Center.

A preseason staple – the ‘Free Game for Kids’ – will be played on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 4 p.m. against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The fifth annual ‘Free Game for Kids’ will once again feature all 18,000-plus tickets being distributed to local youth hockey teams and organizations throughout the region.

The Penguins will play their third and final home preseason game on Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 7 p.m. against the Detroit Red Wings.

Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay will square off in the inaugural Kraft Hockeyville USA matchup at War Memorial Arena in Johnstown, Pa. on Tuesday, Sept. 29. That game will be nationally broadcast on NBC Sports Network with a starting time still to be determined.

The Penguins held all or parts of three training camps in Johnstown between 1981-83. Pittsburgh moved its training camp back to Mt. Lebanon, Pa. in ’84 to coincide with Mario Lemieux’s first NHL season.

One night prior to squaring off with Tampa Bay in Johnstown, the Penguins will play a neutral-site game in Quebec City on Monday, Sept. 28 at 7 p.m. against the Montreal Canadiens in the first-ever game at the Videotron Centre. It will be Pittsburgh’s first preseason neutral-site game since facing the Los Angeles Kings in Kansas City in 2011.

The Penguins will also play preseason road games in Detroit on Thursday, Sept. 24 at 7:30 p.m. and on Friday, Oct. 2 in Raleigh against the Carolina Hurricanes at 7 p.m.

Pittsburgh’s eight exhibition games will be the team’s highest total since 2005-06 when the Penguins played 10 preseason contests.

Television information for all preseason games will be released at a later date.

Below is a look at the Penguins’ 2015-16 preseason schedule: