WHL ANNOUNCES 2012-13 SEASON SCHEDULE

Press Release

Calgary, AB – The Western Hockey League today released its schedule of games for the 2012-13 regular season.

CLICK HERE to download 2012-13 WHL Regular Season Schedule (PDF)
CLICK HERE to download 2012-13 WHL Regular Season Schedule sorted by Home Team (PDF)

The 2012 WHL Opening Weekend will launch on Thursday, September 20, with a special Opening Night game in Edmonton featuring the 2012 WHL Champion Oil Kings hosting the 2011 WHL Champion Kootenay Ice at Rexall Place. The game will be broadcast LIVE on SHAW TV starting at 7:00 pm (MT).

The 2012-13 WHL Regular-Season schedule gets into full swing on Friday, September 21, with eight games scheduled, including the WHL Western Conference Champion Portland Winterhawks' home opener against U.S. Division rivals the Seattle Thunderbirds.

A full slate of 10 WHL games are set for Saturday, September 22, including the host of the 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup Saskatoon Blades welcoming their East Division rivals the Prince Albert Raiders to the Credit Union Centre. This game will also be a feature broadcast LIVE on SHAW TV starting at 7:00 pm (MT).

The 792 game regular season concludes on Sunday, March 17th with the 2013 WHL Playoffs and the battle for the Ed Chynoweth Cup beginning on Friday, March 22nd.

As mentioned, the WHL and the City of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan will serve as the official hosts for the 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup. The Saskatoon Blades will host another WHL Club (either Champion or runner-up), Ontario Hockey League Champions and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Champions from May 17 – 26, 2013.

As in previous seasons, the majority of games will be played on the weekend. Of the 792 games, 553 are scheduled for the weekend, with 235 to be played on a Friday, 232 on a Saturday and 86 on a Sunday. Additionally, 15 weekday games occur on various holidays throughout the season, meaning over 70% of the schedule is played on a weekend or non-school days. During the week, Wednesday night has 110 matches, 94 games are scheduled for Tuesday, 22 contests will be played on Thursday and 13 games are scheduled to be held on Monday.

Day – No. of Games (Percentage)
Monday – 13 (1.6%)
Tuesday – 94 (11.9%)
Wednesday - 110 (13.9%)
Thursday - 22 (2.8%)
Friday – 235 (29.7%)
Saturday - 232 (29.3%)
Sunday – 86 (10.8%)

(Nathan can be reached at fourniern@students.nescom.edu)