After ending their time at Rexall Place in style, the Edmonton Oilers will open up their new state-of-the-art arena, Rogers Place, with four exhibition games before the beginning of the regular season.
On Wednesday, the NHL announced the exhibition season schedule, highlighting the debut of two new arenas -- Rogers Place in Edmonton and T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas -- in the league.
The Oilers will play four exhibition games in their new arena, beginning on Sept. 26 with a split-squad game against the Calgary Flames. They will then host the Anaheim Ducks (Oct. 4), Winnipeg Jets (Oct. 6) and Vancouver Canucks (Oct. 8), before opening the regular season at home against the Flames on Oct. 12.
It was only a month ago that the ice surface at Rogers Place was put in.
Crews were working on a test sheet of ice, about half the height of a normal NHL sheet. They’ve been busy testing the cooling systems in the ice slab for the past couple of weeks.
That #RogersPlace scoreboard is lit. pic.twitter.com/aioOQrrHBR
— Rogers Place (@RogersPlace) August 10, 2016
Ice to see you, #RogersPlace. pic.twitter.com/Ipzr0FG7lU
— Rogers Place (@RogersPlace) July 7, 2016
The L.A. Kings will play a pair of exhibition games at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. They’ll play the Dallas Stars on Oct. 7 and the Colorado Avalanche the following night.
Installation of the ice surface at T-Mobile Arena began at the end of last month.
Kraft Hockeyville has become a staple of the preseason schedule, and this year Canada winner Lumby, British Columbia, and United States winner Marquette, Mich., will be in the spotlight. The Oilers and Kings play at Kal Tire Place in Vernon, British Columbia on Oct. 2 (9 p.m. ET; SN), and the Buffalo Sabres and Carolina Hurricanes play at Lakeview Arena in Marquette on Oct. 4 (7 p.m.. ET; NBCSN).
There will be two preseason games played on college campuses. The Minnesota Wild play the Sabres at Pegula Ice Arena at Penn State University in State College, Pa., on Sept. 26, and the New Jersey Devils play the Florida Panthers at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., on Oct. 8.