Sabres announce 2015-16 regular-season schedule

Buffalo opens its season at home against Ottawa Oct. 8

The Buffalo Sabres and the National Hockey League today announced the team's 2015-16 regular-season schedule. The variable ticket pricing designations for individual games will be released at a later date. Among the highlights of the schedule are the team's 10 afternoon games at First Niagara Center in 2015-16, including seven Saturday games with a 1 p.m. faceoff.

The Sabres open their season at home Thursday, Oct. 8, against the Ottawa Senators in the first of three consecutive home games, marking Buffalo's longest home stand of the season. Two days later, the team will host the reigning Eastern Conference champions, as the Tampa Bay Lightning visit First Niagara Center for Buffalo's first of 10 afternoon home games in 2015-16.

Following another afternoon home game on Columbus Day (Monday, Oct. 12), against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the team will head to Florida and Tampa Bay for the first two road games of the season. With two more home dates against divisional rivals (Toronto and Montreal) immediately following the Florida trip, the Sabres will face Atlantic Division opponents in six of the team's first seven games.

After opening the season with three straight home games, the Sabres have six more three-game home stands throughout the season, the next of which occurs from Oct. 21-24. The longest stretch of away games for the team is also three, with the first of four such road trips taking place from Dec. 6-10 in Western Canada.

Other highlights from the Sabres' 2015-16 home schedule:

• 22 total weekend home games (nine Fridays; 11 Saturdays; two Sundays)
• Three holiday home games (Columbus Day; Thanksgiving eve; New Year's Eve)
• Two home games against Toronto (Wednesday, Oct. 21; Thursday, March 31)
• Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks visit Buffalo Saturday, Dec. 19

Click here to DOWNLOAD Buffalo's full 2015-16 regular-season schedule (PDF).