The Saddledome will host the Flames, Wranglers and Hitmen for 2022-23
By Ryan Pike
1 year agoThe second-oldest arena in the National Hockey League is primed to be among its busiest during the 2022-23 season. In addition to being the home of the Calgary Flames, the Scotiabank Saddledome will also host the American Hockey League’s Calgary Wranglers and the majority of games for the Western Hockey League’s Calgary Hitmen.
Oh, and the National Lacrosse League’s Calgary Roughnecks, too.
Here’s the per-team breakdown, excluding playoffs:
- The Flames will have 41 regular season games, plus 4 pre-season
- The Wranglers will have 36 regular season games – their pre-season plans are still in development
- The Hitmen will have 28 regular season games at the ‘Dome, while their other six games will be hosted at Seven Chiefs Sportsplex on the Tsuut’ina Nation
- The Roughnecks will have 9 regular season games – their schedule hasn’t been announced yet, but it’ll run from December through April
All-told, that’s 118 dates at the Saddledome between September and April, and that’s assuming none of these teams makes the playoffs.
Here’s a monthly breakdown of events:
| Total | Flames | Wranglers | Hitmen | Other | |
| September | 3 | 2 | – | 1 | – |
| October | 18 | 8 | 2 | 5 | 3 |
| November | 19* | 6 | 8 | 2 | 5 |
| December | 19 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 1 |
| January | 17 | 5 | 6 | 6 | – |
| February | 16* | 4 | 8 | 5 | – |
| March | 19* | 8 | 6 | 5 | 1 |
| April | 4 | 4 | – | – | – |
“Other” only includes non-hockey events currently listed on Ticketmaster, so it doesn’t include Roughnecks games (which will be two per month from December through April, through one month will have one fewer game).
The Saddledome is slated to host four double-headers during the season (which is why the numbers in the above tables don’t quite add up in November, February and March, marked by asterisks):
- Nov. 25: Wranglers vs. Abbotsford at 1, Hitmen vs. Prince Albert at 7.
- Nov. 27: Wranglers vs. Abbotsford at 1, Hitmen vs. Red Deer at 4.
- Feb. 22: Hitmen vs. Winnipeg at 11 (in the annual Be Brave anti-bullying game), Wranglers vs. Henderson at 7.
- Mar. 26: Hitmen vs. Edmonton at 2, Wranglers vs. San Diego at 7.
In terms of games to circle on your calendar:
- Oct. 16: The Wranglers play their first-ever game against Seattle’s new farm team, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, who will also be playing their first-ever game.
- Oct. 29: The first Battle of Alberta in Calgary of the season between the Flames and Oilers.
- Nov. 29: Matthew Tkachuk returns to Calgary with the Florida Panthers.
- Dec. 1: The only visit to Calgary of the season from the Montreal Canadiens.
- Dec. 4: The annual Teddy Bear Toss game, featuring the Hitmen hosting the Moose Jaw Warriors.
- Dec. 27: The second Battle of Alberta in Calgary of the season between the Flames and Oilers.
- Jan. 8: The first edition of the new-look AHL Battle of Alberta, with the Wranglers hosting the Bakersfield Condors for the first time.
- Jan. 23: Johnny Gaudreau returns to Calgary with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
- Feb. 1: The Hitmen host the Regina Pats, with it being the only visit of the season of prospective first-overall 2023 NHL Draft prospect Connor Bedard to Calgary.
- Mar. 2: The only visit to Calgary of the season from the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Saddledome is home to one of the NHL’s oldest ice plants, and it’ll be busy with a lot of games this coming season. What that actually means in an operational sense is that we’ll probably see Flames, Wranglers and Hitmen practices and morning skates happening elsewhere – expect lots of ice times at Winsport – as the Saddledome’s ice crew does their level best to give the ice time to recover whenever possible.
In other words: if you’re hoping to watch live sports at the Saddledome over the next year, you will have tons of opportunities.
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