Regular season schedule out...feast away

I'm not much of a schedule guru and really will not take the time to dig into it until the season gets closer, but for those of you that like looking at the nuts & bolts, the full NHL regular season schedule was released today. The only thing that I caught with a quick glance, was that regular season single-game tickets will go on sale Saturday, Sept. 12 and pre-season tickets will go on sale Saturday, Aug. 22. Other than that, I have not dug in too far yet. You however, can dig in by taking a peak at the Minnesota Wild portion of the schedule along with the full release below...

For Immediate Release
Wednesday, July 15, 2009

MINNESOTA WILD ANNOUNCES 2009-10 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE
Wild To Begin Season at Columbus on Saturday, Oct. 3; Home Opener Tuesday, Oct. 6 versus Anaheim

SAINT PAUL/MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The Minnesota Wild’s 2009-10 National Hockey League (NHL) regular season schedule was released today. The Wild will begin the season at Nationwide Arena against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday, Oct. 3, at 6:00 p.m. (CT). The Wild will play its home opener at Xcel Energy Center on Tuesday, Oct. 6, against the Anaheim Ducks, at 8:00 p.m.

The 2009-10 schedule consists of 82 games – 41 at Xcel Energy Center and 41 road contests. The Wild’s home schedule features 18 weekend games (six on Friday, eight on Saturday and four on Sunday) and four afternoon contests (Nov. 27, Feb. 14, March 7, March 21). Most evening games at Xcel Energy Center will begin at 7:00 p.m.

Minnesota will play each member of the Northwest Division (Calgary, Colorado, Edmonton and Vancouver) six times (three times at home, three times on road) for a total of 24 games. In addition, the club will play the remaining members of the Western Conference’s Pacific Division (Anaheim, Dallas, Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Jose) and Central Division (Chicago, Columbus, Detroit, Nashville and St. Louis) four times each (twice at home and twice on the road) for a total of 40 games.

The Wild will play 18 games against the Eastern Conference this season, playing seven games against the Atlantic Division, six against the Southeast Division and five against the Northeast Division. Minnesota will play a home game and road game each against Carolina, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Minnesota will also visit Eastern Conference members, Buffalo, Montreal, Ottawa, Tampa Bay, Toronto and Washington, while hosting Atlanta, Boston, Florida, New Jersey, the New York Islanders and the New York Rangers.

Popular out-of-town visits at Xcel Energy Center include: the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins (Jan. 11), the Western Conference champion Detroit Red Wings (Jan. 21, Jan. 27), the Anaheim Ducks (Oct. 6, Dec. 4), the Calgary Flames (Jan. 6, March 7, March 21), the Chicago Blackhawks (Jan. 9, March 31), the division rival Colorado Avalanche (Oct. 21, Nov. 27, Dec. 21), the Dallas Stars (Nov. 7, April 10), the San Jose Sharks (March 23, April 2), the Vancouver Canucks (Nov. 5, Jan. 13, Feb. 14), the New York Rangers (Oct. 30) and the New Jersey Devils (Jan. 2). The Wild’s game against Columbus on Saturday, Jan. 23, will be part of the 4th Annual Hockey Day Minnesota, a partnership between the Wild and FOX Sports North.

The Olympic Break will be Feb. 15-28. No games or practices can be scheduled during this time, when NHL players will participate in the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

The Wild’s longest homestand is five games: Feb. 4-Feb. 14, against Edmonton, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Atlanta and Vancouver. The club has a pair of five-game road trips: Oct. 8-Oct. 17 at Los Angeles, San Jose, Anaheim, Edmonton and Vancouver, and also Dec. 5-Dec. 12 at Nashville, Phoenix, Colorado, Calgary and Vancouver.

Regular season single-game tickets will go on sale Saturday, Sept. 12. Pre-season tickets will go on sale Saturday, Aug. 22. For more information please contact the Minnesota Wild at (651) 222-WILD (9453).

2009-10 MINNESOTA WILD SCHEDULE NOTES

Home Games By Day: Mon. – 3, Tue. – 5, Wed. – 11, Thu. – 4, Fri. – 6, Sat. – 8, Sun. – 4
Road Games By Day: Mon. – 5, Tue. – 4, Wed. – 3, Thu. – 9, Fri. – 8, Sat. – 10, Sun. – 2

Home Games By Month: Oct. – 5, Nov. – 6, Dec. – 7, Jan. – 8, Feb. – 5, March – 8, April – 2
Road Games By Month: Oct. – 9, Nov. – 5, Dec. – 9, Jan. – 6, Feb. – 1, March – 8, April – 3

Games By Conference/Division
Western Conference: Central Division (20) Northwest Division (24) Pacific Division (20)

Eastern Conference: Atlantic Division (7) Northeast Division (5) Southeast Division (6)

Opponents Visits To Minnesota (41): Anaheim-2, Atlanta-1, Boston-1, Buffalo-0, Calgary-3, Carolina-1, Chicago-2, Colorado-3, Columbus-2, Dallas-2, Detroit-2, Edmonton-3, Florida-1, Los Angeles-2, Montreal-0, Nashville-2, New Jersey-1, New York Islanders-1, New York Rangers-1, Ottawa-0, Philadelphia-1, Phoenix-2, Pittsburgh-1, St. Louis-2, San Jose-2, Tampa Bay-0, Toronto-0, Vancouver-3, Washington-0

Wild Visits To Road Cities (41): Anaheim-2, Atlanta-0, Boston-0, Buffalo-1, Calgary-3, Carolina-1, Chicago-2, Colorado-3, Columbus-2, Dallas-2, Detroit-2, Edmonton-3, Florida-0, Los Angeles-2, Montreal-1, Nashville-2, New Jersey-0, New York Islanders-0, New York Rangers-0, Ottawa-1, Philadelphia-1, Phoenix-2, Pittsburgh-1, St. Louis-2, San Jose-2, Tampa Bay-1, Toronto-1, Vancouver-3, Washington-1

After The Olympic Break – Minnesota will have 21 games remaining on its schedule, including 10 home games and 11 road contests.

Longest Homestand: 5 games:
Feb. 4 – Feb. 14 vs. Edmonton, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Atlanta, Vancouver

Longest Road Trip: 5 games:
Oct. 8 – Oct. 17 at Los Angeles, San Jose, Anaheim, Edmonton, Vancouver
Dec. 5 – Dec. 12 at Nashville, Phoenix, Colorado, Calgary, Vancouver

Back-To-Back Games:
Overall: 15 (same as last season)
Back-to-back at home: 0
Road game followed by home game next day: 2 (2 last year)
Back-to-back on road: 8 (6 last year)
Home game followed by road game next day: 5 (7 last year)

Length of 2009-10 Season: 190 days (Oct. 3 – April 10), seven days more than the 2008-09 campaign.

SEASON SCHEDULE

DAY DATE OPPONENT TIME (CT)
OCTOBER – REGULAR SEASON
Sat. 3 @ Columbus 6:00 p.m.
TUE. 6 ANAHEIM 8:00 P.M.
Thu. 8 @ Los Angeles 9:30 p.m.
Sat. 10 @ San Jose 9:30 p.m.
Wed. 14 @ Anaheim 9:00 p.m.
Fri. 16 @ Edmonton 8:00 p.m.
Sat. 17 @ Vancouver 9:00 p.m.
WED. 21 COLORADO 7:00 P.M.
Fri. 23 @ St. Louis 7:00 p.m.
SAT. 24 CAROLINA 7:00 P.M.
Mon. 26 @ Chicago 7:30 p.m.
WED. 28 NASHVILLE 7:00 P.M.
FRI. 30 N.Y. RANGERS 7:00 P.M.
Sat. 31 @ Pittsburgh 6:30 p.m.

NOVEMBER
THU. 5 VANCOUVER 7:00 P.M.
SAT. 7 DALLAS 7:00 P.M.
Tue. 10 @ Toronto 6:00 p.m.
Thu. 12 @ Tampa Bay 6:30 p.m.
Fri. 13 @ Washington 6:00 p.m.
Sun. 15 @ Carolina 12:30 p.m.
WED. 18 PHOENIX 7:00 P.M.
FRI. 20 N.Y. ISLANDERS 7:00 P.M.
WED. 25 BOSTON 7:00 P.M.
FRI. 27 COLORADO 1:00 P.M.
Sat. 28 @ Colorado 8:00 p.m.

DECEMBER
WED. 2 NASHVILLE 7:00 P.M.
FRI. 4 ANAHEIM 7:00 P.M.
Sat. 5 @ Nashville 7:00 p.m.
Mon. 7 @ Phoenix 8:00 p.m.
Wed. 9 @ Colorado 8:00 p.m.
Fri. 11 @ Calgary 8:00 p.m.
Sat. 12 @ Vancouver 9:00 p.m.
TUE. 15 COLUMBUS 7:00 P.M.
Thu. 17 @ Montreal 6:00 p.m.
Sat. 19 @ Ottawa 6:00 p.m.
MON. 21 COLORADO 7:00 P.M.
WED. 23 EDMONTON 6:00 P.M.
SAT. 26 ST. LOUIS 7:00 P.M.
Mon. 28 @ Los Angeles 9:30 p.m.
Tue. 29 @ Anaheim 9:00 p.m.
THUR. 31 LOS ANGELES 7:00 P.M.

JANUARY
SAT. 2 NEW JERSEY 7:00 P.M.
Tue. 5 @ Chicago 7:30 p.m.
WED. 6 CALGARY 7:00 p.m.
SAT. 9 CHICAGO 7:00 p.m.
MON. 11 PITTSBURGH 7:00 p.m.
WED. 13 VANCOUVER 6:00 p.m.
Thu. 14 @ St. Louis 7:00 p.m.
Sat. 16 @ Phoenix 7:00 p.m.
Mon. 18 @ Dallas 7:00 p.m.
THU. 21 DETROIT 7:00 P.M.
SAT. 23 COLUMBUS 8:00 P.M.
WED. 27 DETROIT 7:00 P.M.
Thu. 28 @ Colorado 8:00 p.m.
Sat. 30 @ San Jose 9:30 p.m.

FEBRUARY
Tue. 2 @ Dallas 7:30 p.m.
THU. 4 EDMONTON 7:00 P.M.
SAT. 6 PHILADELPHIA 7:00 P.M.
WED. 10 PHOENIX 7:00 P.M.
FRI. 12 ATLANTA 7:00 P.M.
SUN. 14 VANCOUVER 2:00 P.M.
Feb. 15-28 Olympic Break

MARCH
Wed. 3 @ Calgary 9:00 p.m.
Fri. 5 @ Edmonton 8:00 p.m.
SUN. 7 CALGARY 2:00 P.M.
TUE. 9 FLORIDA 7:00 P.M.
Thu. 11 @ Detroit 6:30 p.m.
Fri. 12 @ Buffalo 6:30 p.m.
SUN. 14 ST. LOUIS 5:00 P.M.
TUE. 16 EDMONTON 7:00 P.M.
Thu. 18 @ Nashville 7:00 p.m.
Fri. 19 @ Columbus 6:00 p.m.
SUN. 21 CALGARY 2:00 P.M.
TUE. 23 SAN JOSE 7:00 P.M.
Thu. 25 @ Philadelphia 6:00 p.m.
Fri. 26 @ Detroit 6:30 p.m.
MON. 29 LOS ANGELES 8:00 P.M.
WED. 31 CHICAGO 7:00 P.M.

APRIL
FRI. 2 SAN JOSE 7:00 P.M.
Sun. 4 @ Vancouver 9:00 p.m.
Mon. 5 @ Edmonton 8:30 p.m.
Thu. 8 @ Calgary 8:30 p.m.
SAT. 10 DALLAS 7:00 P.M.

BOLD INDICATES HOME GAME
DATES AND TIMES SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Ryan Stanzel
Minnesota Wild/Minnesota Swarm
Media Relations and Team Services Coordinator