Before you know it, it will be time to head back to the rink.
Earlier today, the Western Hockey League released the schedule for the 2019-20 season.
The Moose Jaw Warriors will open their season on the road against their rivals the Regina Pats on Friday, Sept. 20. That will be followed by the home opener, which will serve as the second half of a home-and-home with the Pats on Saturday, Sept. 21.
The Warriors will play 11 of their first 17 games on home ice.
The month of February, however, will be spent largely on the road. Of course, that is partly due to the 2020 Scotties, which will be held from Feb. 15 to 23 at Mosaic Place.
As a result, Moose Jaw will host Saskatoon on Feb. 8 as the first part of a home-and-home series but won’t play again at Mosaic Place until Feb. 28. During that break they will play seven road games, which includes a trip to the United States to take on Spokane, Tri Cities, Seattle, Portland, and Everett.
The Warriors will play the Winnipeg Ice — formerly the Kootenay Ice — for the first time on Friday, Nov. 8 at Mosaic Place. Moose Jaw’s first game in Winnipeg will be on Sunday, Jan. 26.
The Warriors will finish their season with a home-and-home series against the Pats; their last game of the season will be at Mosaic Place on Saturday, March 21.
The WHL playoffs will begin on Friday, March 27.
In a press release, the league says it is trying to include fewer weekday games. In 2019-20, the Warriors will play eight games on Wednesdays and eight on Tuesdays. The team will not have any Monday or Thursday games this season; all other games will be played on the weekends, with just eight Sunday games in total.
For the second year in a row, WHL teams will play 68 games during the regular season. Prior to the 2018-19 season, clubs played 72 games.
The full schedule is available on the WHL website.
