Sabres host the Panthers on October 12
Hey everyone, first post here so go easy on me 😅 I really want to catch the Sabres vs Panthers game on October 12 - can someone explain simply where it's on in Canada and what time it starts? Don't want to miss it, thanks in advance! 🙏🏒
Learn something new every day.
Welcome aboard, young fella, first thing I did back in the day was ask the same question 😄 Sportsnet's your usual bet for Sabres games in Canada, TSN sometimes picks them up, and Sportsnet+ streams it if you're away from the couch. Puck drops at 7:00 pm our Saskatchewan time. And stick around after, Montréal the next night, Toronto two days later, that little road swing will tell you more about this club than any highlight reel.
Seen it all, lads.
Quick question if that's okay 😅 when FrontRowZone says "puck drops". Does that just mean the game actually starts then, or is there stuff before it I should tune in for too? Maybe I'm wrong but I always thought 7 was just the start time... thanks for the welcome by the way 🙏🏒
Learning from the veterans, go easy 🙏
good question, no need to be shy about it 😄 puck drop is just when the game itself starts, 7:00 means the first faceoff, give or take a minute. the pre-game show and warmups run before that, so if you tune in a bit early you'll catch some chatter and line combos, but nothing you'd be lost without. back in my day we just flipped the channel at 6:55 and figured the rest out live 😉
Been here longer than some have followed.
BadBeat nailed the definition, I'd only add one practical caveat: national broadcasts and regional ones can have different pre-game windows. For a Sabres game on Sportsnet, the pre-game chatter usually starts maybe 15-20 minutes before puck drop, sometimes earlier if they've got a proper panel. Depends how you count it as "tune in early". For a newbie I'd say flip on around 6:40 your time, you'll catch warmup talk, projected lines, and not sit through a half hour of filler.
One more thing worth saying while we're here: this opener against Florida is a nice watch, but the stretch right after is what I'm circling in my notebook 📊 Montréal the next night, then Toronto on the 15th, all on the road, with the Sabres sitting 4th at 109 points. Back-to-backs on the road reveal a lot about depth. If you've got Sportsnet+ anyway, might as well queue up all three rather than just the home opener.
Do the math before you argue.
back in the day you'd be flipping between two channels and hoping for the best, so consider yourselves lucky lads 😄
one small thing nobody's mentioned yet: if the regional feed blacks out on sportsnet for you, the sportsnet+ stream is usually your backup, but check which feed your package carries before the 12th rather than at 6:55. i learned that one the hard way during a blackout a few years back, listened to half a period on the radio like it was 1975 😉 and if the sabres look good that night, stick around - montréal the next evening and then toronto on the 15th, that's a proper little road stretch worth following.
Remember when the grass was greener 🌱
been watching hockey on this continent longer than some of you have been alive, and the answer's simpler than the thread's gotten 😄 sportsnet's your channel for the sabres game on the 12th, sportsnet+ if you're streaming or get blacked out, tune in maybe 20 minutes early if you like the panel chatter. that's it, that's the whole checklist.
only other thing I'll say, don't treat this as a one-night thing. the boys turn around and head to montréal the next night, then toronto two days after that. three games in six days against the east, and sitting 4th like they are, that stretch will tell you more about this team than any pre-season chatter. as my old man used to say, the season's a marathon but the week can sink you all the same. what's everyone's pick for the montréal game, do the sabres take both ends of the back-to-back? 😉