The countdown continues with a look at Utah's opening-night opponent.
In just two months and two days from now, the Utah Hockey Club will open their inaugural season with a showdown with an Original Six foe in Chicago.
We know Chicago and Utah are two clubs are continuing to build their way to being a contender in the future; it helps when Connor Bedard for the Blackhawks and Tij Iginla, among others, respectively, for Utah, are in your corner.
And that could be the matchup to watch on October 8.
We know Utah's forward pool is deep and talented with names like Clayton Keller, Mattias Macchelli, Dylan Guenther, and Barrett Hayton, among others.
We also know Chicago has loaded up with the likes of Patrick Maroon and Teuvo Teravainen, also adding Nick Foligno and Taylor Hall.
And the coaches? Luke Richardson is entering his third year with the 'Hawks, while Andre Tourigny is entering his fourth year with Utah.
It's too early to say who has the advantage in this one; it'll also be hard to judge the direction of the clubs based off the first game of the regular season.
But as we look at the matchup, the freedom these two teams will play with intrigues me.
General manager Bill Armstrong's aim is to win meaningful games this season, and this will be a good first test against a young team. There will be no pressure on this game, since it is the opener, and thus, the freedom with which both these teams play will be a good indicator of what may be to come.
Plus, who wouldn't want to see Bedard vs. Iginla on opening night, anyway?