Though the regular season schedule is still a few hours away, we now have a pretty good idea of the Jackets’ pre-season appearances thanks to leaks, releases from other teams, and some good old fashioned detective work by other fans.
First off is the news from Aaron Portzline that the Blue Jackets will be the Winnipeg ________’s first official NHL opponent on Tuesday, 9/20. The Jackets and the ________ will play a split squad scrimmage, with each team sending a partial squad to the other. If I had to guess, I’d agree that Scott Arniel will coach the road team, not only because of his history with the Manitoba Moose, but as a former Jets’ player. For that matter, I’d expect Brad Berry to be on that trip for the same reasons, while Todd Richards and perhaps Dan Hinote will coach the “home squad”. I suspect that we’ll also see Western Canada natives Kris Russell, Matt Calvert, and Derek Dorsett on the road team as well. Calvert’s hometown of Brandon is about a two and a half hour drive from the ‘Peg, and it would be a great chance for his family to come out and see him in an NHL game.
Next, Danielle Browne (AKA @frickindannie) caught that the Buffalo Sabres have posted their pre-season schedule, which includes a game on Sunday, 9/25 at Nationwide.
Finally, Lori Schmidt compiled the known dates, and it’s starting to look like a pretty full slate. If I had to guess, we’ll probably see 2-3 more games announced later today – it seems like most NHL teams have been setting up a 6-8 game schedule this year.
Edit: Just like that another date leaks – according to twitter user @dreamofcolors, the Jackets will be in Raleigh, NC to take on the Carolina Hurricanes on September 30th. Kinda interesting that the pre-season schedule is becoming so Eastern heavy. Foreshadowing, perhaps…?