SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Syracuse Crunch, in conjunction with the AHL, have announced their 2018-19 regular-season schedule.
The Crunch, the top minor-league affiliate of the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning, will open their 25th season on the road against the Hershey Bears on Oct. 6 and will visit the Rochester Americans on Oct. 10, the team announced in a news release. The Crunch will then return to the Onondaga County War Memorial to host the Charlotte Checkers for the home opener on Oct. 13 at 7 p.m.
Syracuse’s 76-game hockey schedule features 38 home contests that include one Sunday, one Monday, two Wednesdays, 15 Fridays, and 19 Saturdays. All home games will start at 7 p.m., except for Sunday, Nov. 11, which begins at 5 p.m. and Monday, Jan. 21, which starts at 1 p.m.
The Crunch will face 15 teams in the North and Atlantic Divisions. The most frequent matchups will be 12 contests against both Rochester and Utica. Syracuse will also play 10 games against Binghamton; six each against Belleville, Laval and Toronto; four each against Charlotte, Cleveland and Springfield; and two each against Bridgeport, Hartford, Hershey, Lehigh Valley, Providence, and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
March will be the Crunch’s busiest month with 16 games scheduled. The team will play 12 in December, January and February; 11 in November; seven in October; and six in April.
The Crunch will have two five-game home stands this season. The first comes in the January-February period. The second is split between February and March. The most home games also fall in March, when the Crunch host eight.
Syracuse will also have two five-game road trips, with one each in December and February.
The Syracuse Crunch ended their most recent season with a 2-1 loss to the Toronto Marlies in Game 4 of the North Division Finals in Calder Cup playoffs.
Syracuse Crunch season tickets, partial season tickets, and flex packages are on sale now by calling the office at (315) 473-4444. Single-game tickets will go on sale in mid-September, the team said.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com