The preseason schedule includes the Hamilton Bulldogs and Toronto Marlies heading to Edinburgh, Scotland, to join the Edinburgh Capitals and the Belfast Giants of the Elite Ice Hockey League to compete for the 2009 Gardiner Cup. The tournament marks a celebration of Scotland’s contributions to the invention of the game of ice hockey.
The 2009 preseason is also the first opportunity for fans in three new AHL cities to see their teams. The Adirondack Phantoms host the Albany River Rats in their debut at the Glens Falls Civic Center on Sept. 25; the Abbotsford Heat play a two-game preseason series with the Manitoba Moose at the Entertainment & Sports Centre on Sept. 25 and 27; and the Texas Stars take to the Cedar Park Center ice to battle the San Antonio Rampage on Sept. 27.
Twenty-four of the 41 games on the AHL’s preseason schedule are set to be played at local community and neutral-site rinks. The 2009 preseason will also feature two games between AHL clubs and their NHL affiliates, as Norfolk hosts the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sept. 25 and Texas entertains the Dallas Stars on Sept. 30.
The American Hockey League’s 74th regular season begins on Fri., Oct. 2, as 29 teams begin competition for the prestigious Calder Cup. In operation since 1936, the AHL continues to serve as the top development league for the players, coaches, managers, executives and broadcasters of all 30 National Hockey League teams. More than 84 percent of today’s NHL players are American Hockey League graduates, and for the eighth year in a row, more than 6 million fans attended AHL games across North America in 2008-09.
| 2009 AHL PRESEASON SCHEDULE | |||
| Sat., 9/19 | W-B/Scranton vs. Binghamton | Broome Community College Ice Center Binghamton, N.Y. |
7:30 ET |
| Sun., 9/20 | Binghamton vs. W-B/Scranton | Wachovia Arena at Casey Plaza Wilkes-Barre, Pa. |
5:05 ET |
| Wed., 9/23 | Worcester vs. Hartford | Koeppel Community Sports Center Hartford, Conn. |
7:00 ET |
| Springfield vs. Providence | New England Sports Center Marlborough, Mass. |
7:00 ET | |
| Chicago vs. Rockford | Carlson Arctic Ice Arena Loves Park, Ill. |
7:00 CT | |
| Thu., 9/24 | Toronto vs. Hamilton | Murrayfield Ice Rink Edinburgh, Scotland |
7:00 pm local/ 2:00 pm ET |
| Lowell vs. Providence | Iorio Arena Walpole, Mass. |
6:05 ET | |
| Texas vs. San Antonio | Ice Center at Northwoods San Antonio, Texas |
7:30 CT | |
| Fri., 9/25 | Bridgeport vs. Hartford | Champions Skating Center Cromwell, Conn. |
7:00 ET |
| W-B/Scranton vs. Hershey | Giant Center Hershey, Pa. |
7:00 ET | |
| Binghamton vs. Syracuse | Campus Center Oswego, N.Y. |
7:00 ET | |
| Tampa Bay (NHL) vs. Norfolk | Scope Norfolk, Va. |
7:00 ET | |
| Worcester vs. Springfield | MassMutual Center Springfield, Mass. |
7:30 ET | |
| Albany vs. Adirondack | Glens Falls Civic Center Glens Falls, N.Y. |
7:35 ET | |
| Chicago vs. Milwaukee | Wilson Ice Arena Milwaukee, Wis. |
7:00 CT | |
| Rockford vs. Peoria | Carver Arena Peoria, Ill. |
7:00 CT | |
| Manitoba vs. Abbotsford | Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre Abbotsford, B.C. |
7:30 PT | |
| Sat., 9/26 | Gardiner Cup semifinal: Toronto vs. Edinburgh (EIHL) |
Murrayfield Ice Rink Edinburgh, Scotland |
1:30 pm local/ 8:30 am ET |
| Gardiner Cup semifinal: Hamilton vs. Belfast (EIHL) |
Murrayfield Ice Rink Edinburgh, Scotland |
5:30 pm local/ 12:30 pm ET |
|
| Adirondack vs. Albany | Times Union Center Albany, N.Y. |
5:00 ET | |
| Lowell vs. Portland | Portland Ice Arena Portland, Maine |
5:00 ET | |
| Hartford vs. Bridgeport | The Rinks at Shelton Shelton, Conn. |
7:00 ET | |
| San Antonio vs. Houston | Sugar Land Ice & Sports Center Sugar Land, Texas |
6:00 CT | |
| Rochester vs. Lake Erie | Hoover Arena Strongsville, Ohio |
7:00 ET | |
| Providence vs. Springfield | MassMutual Center Springfield, Mass. |
7:00 ET | |
| Hershey vs. W-B/Scranton | Wachovia Arena at Casey Plaza Wilkes-Barre, Pa. |
7:05 ET | |
| Syracuse vs. Binghamton | Broome Community College Ice Center Binghamton, N.Y. |
7:30 ET | |
| Milwaukee vs. Chicago | Hoffman Estates Park District Ice Arena Hoffman Estates, Ill. |
7:00 CT | |
| Peoria vs. Rockford | Rockford MetroCentre Rockford, Ill. |
7:05 CT | |
| Sun., 9/27 | Gardiner Cup consolation | Murrayfield Ice Rink Edinburgh, Scotland |
1:30 pm local/ 8:30 am ET |
| Gardiner Cup championship | Murrayfield Ice Rink Edinburgh, Scotland |
5:30 pm local/ 12:30 pm ET |
|
| Portland vs. Manchester | Notre Dame Arena Berlin, N.H. |
2:00 ET | |
| Worcester vs. Hartford | International Skating Center Simsbury, Conn. |
3:00 ET | |
| San Antonio vs. Texas | Cedar Park Center Cedar Park, Texas |
3:00 CT | |
| Norfolk vs. Hershey | Giant Center Hershey, Pa. |
5:00 ET | |
| Syracuse vs. Rochester | ESL Sports Centre Rochester, N.Y. |
6:00 ET | |
| Manitoba vs. Abbotsford | Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre Abbotsford, B.C. |
5:00 PT | |
| Mon., 9/28 | Houston vs. Texas | Cedar Park Center Cedar Park, Texas |
7:00 CT |
| Tue., 9/29 | Rochester vs. Syracuse | War Memorial at Oncenter Syracuse, N.Y. |
7:00 ET |
| Wed., 9/30 | Hamilton vs. Toronto | General Motors Centre Oshawa, Ont. |
7:00 ET |
| Dallas (NHL) vs. Texas | Cedar Park Center Cedar Park, Texas |
7:00 CT | |
