When the NHL released its full regular-season schedule on Tuesday, newly acquired free agents Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marcesau had plenty of reason to mark their calendars, as did newly hired coaches Craig Berube, Sheldon Keefe and Dan Bylsma.
As for a rematch of the Stanley Cup Final, the defending champion Florida Panthers will travel to Edmonton on Dec. 16, and the two teams will meet in Florida on Feb. 27 to complete the two-game series.
Here are some highlights from the NHL's 1,312-game schedule, which begins with the New Jersey Devils taking on the Buffalo Sabres in Prague, Czech Republic, on Oct. 4 and 5 and concludes with a six-game series on April 17.
Players' return
A day after leaving Tampa Bay in free agency and signing with Nashville, Stamkos and the Predators are scheduled to travel to face the Lightning on Oct. 28. Meanwhile, Marchessault, who also signed with the Predators, will have to wait until April 12 before he is first scheduled to return to Las Vegas to face the Golden Knights.
Meanwhile, Jake DeBrusk, who left Boston to sign with Vancouver, is set to return to Beantown when the Bruins host the Canucks on Nov. 26.
Coaching Homecoming
The offseason coaching changes also have an impact, with the first of these coming when Lindy Ruff returns for his second stint as head coach in Buffalo, facing his most recent team, the Devils, in the season opener in Prague.
Keefe, the former Maple Leafs coach now in New Jersey, is scheduled to meet with his former players at the Devils' opener in Newark on Oct. 10 after returning from Europe. Keefe is scheduled to return to Toronto, where he spent the past five seasons as manager of the Maple Leafs, on Jan. 16.
Berube, the former Blues Cup-winning coach now with Toronto, is scheduled to return to St. Louis on Nov. 2.
Now in Seattle, Bylsma will face his two former teams a few days apart during the Kraken's five-game road trip. He will face his most recent team, the Sabres, in Buffalo on Jan. 11 before traveling to Pittsburgh, where he led the Penguins to a championship in 2009, three days later.
Get a break
After the regular season officially begins on Oct. 8, there will be 16 days on the calendar where no NHL games will be played.
No games are scheduled on U.S. Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 28. The NHL's annual Christmas holiday will be Dec. 24-26.
The league will also take a 12-day break from Feb. 10-21 before hosting the Four Nations Face-Off featuring teams from the United States, Canada, Sweden and Finland. The schedule will conclude with two games on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9, between Utah and Washington and Tampa Bay and Montreal, before resuming play on Feb. 22 with a 14-game schedule.
The schedule includes seven days with just one game, including Oct. 21 when the Lightning travel to Toronto to play, and Oct. 2 when the Flyers travel to Washington.
The Great Outdoors
The NHL has already announced two outdoor games, with the Chicago Blackhawks set to host the Blues at Wrigley Field on Dec. 31. The Detroit Red Wings will then travel to Columbus on March 1 to play at Ohio State University's Horseshoe Stadium.
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Pittsburgh Penguins 2024-2025 Schedule
October 9: NY Rangers, 7:30 p.m.
October 10: Detroit, 7 p.m.
October 12: Toronto, 7 p.m.
October 14: Montreal, 7:30 p.m.
October 16: Buffalo, 7 p.m.
October 18: Carolina, 7 p.m.
October 20: Winnipeg, 3 p.m.
October 22: Calgary, 8:45 p.m.
October 25: Edmonton, 9 p.m.
October 26: Vancouver, 10 p.m.
October 29: Minnesota, 7:30 p.m.
October 31: Anaheim, 7 p.m.
November 2: Montreal, 7 p.m.
November 5: NY Islanders, 7:30 p.m.
November 7: Carolina, 7 p.m.
November 8: Washington, 7 p.m.
Nov. 11: Dallas, 7 p.m.
November 13: Detroit, 7:30 p.m.
November 15: Columbus, 7 p.m.
November 16: San Jose, 7 p.m.
November 19: Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
November 22: Winnipeg, 7 p.m.
November 23: Utah, 7 p.m.
November 27: Vancouver, 7:30 p.m.
November 29: Boston, 6 p.m.
November 30: Calgary, 7 p.m.
December 3: Florida, 7 p.m.
December 6: vs. NY Rangers, 7 p.m.
December 7: Toronto, 7 p.m.
December 10: Colorado, 7 p.m.
December 12: Montreal, 7 p.m.
December 14: Ottawa, 7 p.m.
December 17: Los Angeles, 7pm
December 19: Nashville, 8 p.m.
December 21: New Jersey, 7 p.m.
December 23: Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
December 28: NY Islanders, 7:30 p.m.
December 29: NY Islanders, 5:30 p.m.
December 31: Detroit, 8 p.m.
January 3: Florida, 7 p.m.
January 5: Carolina, 6 p.m.
January 7: Columbus, 7 p.m.
January 9: Edmonton, 7 p.m.
January 11: Ottawa, 4 p.m.
January 12: Tampa Bay, 5 p.m.
January 14: Seattle, 7 p.m.
January 17: Buffalo, 7 p.m.
January 18: Washington, 7 p.m.
January 20: Los Angeles, 10:30 p.m.
January 23: Anaheim, 10 p.m.
January 25: Seattle, 4 p.m.
January 27: San Jose, 10:30 p.m.
January 29: Utah, 9:30 p.m.
February 1: Nashville, 7 p.m.
February 4: New Jersey, 7 p.m.
February 7: vs. NY Rangers, 7 p.m.
February 8: Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
February 22: Washington, 1 p.m.
February 23: NY Rangers, 3:30 p.m.
February 25: Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
February 27: Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
March 1st: Boston, 3 p.m.
March 2: Toronto, 1 p.m.
March 4: Colorado, 9 p.m.
March 7: Las Vegas, 10 p.m.
March 9: Minnesota, 3:30 p.m.
March 11: Las Vegas, 7 p.m.
March 13: St. Louis, 7 p.m.
March 15: New Jersey, 3 p.m.
March 18: NY Islanders, 7 p.m.
March 21: Columbus, 7 p.m.
March 23: Florida, 6 p.m.
March 25: Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
March 27: Buffalo, 7 p.m.
March 30: Ottawa, 5 p.m.
April 3: St. Louis, 8 p.m.
April 5: Dallas, 3:30 p.m.
April 6: Chicago, 6 p.m.
April 8: Chicago, 7:30 p.m.
April 11: New Jersey, 7 p.m.
April 13: Boston, 3:30 p.m.
