The NHL announced the schedule for this season and although the outdoor game is not official it appears to be set. While we wait to hear about the outdoor game there are few details we do know. The Buffalo Sabres will begin the 2007-2008 season with a home and home series against the New York Islanders. The season will begin on Friday October 5th at HSBC Arena and game time will be 7:30 p.m.. The Sabres have eliminated the 8 o'clock start time for Friday night games this season.
The first game against the Ottawa Senators, the team that eliminated Buffalo from last years Stanley Cup Playoffs, will be on Thursday November 15th and they will come to HSBC Arena on November 21st.
The Sabres first meeting with Daniel Briere will be on Friday December 21st at the HSBC Arena. It will be interesting to see what type of reaction he gets from the fans. The two teams will meet again the following night in Philadelphia. The first meeting with Chris Drury and the NY Rangers will take place in Madison Square Garden on Wednesday January 16th.
Some other points of interest in the schedule are a west coast trip from Wednesday December 5th till Saturday December 8th. The Sabres will take on the Stanley Cup Champion Anaheim Ducks on Wed. Dec. 5, the LA Kings on Thursday Dec. 6, and the San Jose Sharks on Saturday Dec. 8. The Sabres will play a toatl of 13 games in the Month of January and only three will be played at home. There is also a possibility that only two will be played in HSBC Arena if the New Years Day Game is played at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The Final five games in January will be played on the road and are part of a seven game road trip.
Another former Buffalo Sabre will make his return to HSBC Arena when Jay McKee an the St. Louis Blues come to town on Wednesday November 28th. The Chicago Blackhawks will come to town on Saturday December 15th in a game that could see Patrick Kane return to his hometown.
The final thing to note regarding the Sabres 2007-2008 schedule is that the Sabres will complete the Season on Saturday April 5th against the Boston Bruins. The Sabres will play their final eight games against division opponents. They will play the Senators, Leafs, Canadiens, and Bruins two times each over the final two weeks of the season.
I'll have more on my take on the schedule later this evening. If we want to see the entire Sabres schedule follow this link to NHL.com