5 most compelling rivalry games of the NHL home openers

PITTSBURGH, PA - MAY 07: Pittsburgh Penguins center Riley Sheahan (15) handles the puck while Washington Capitals Defenseman John Carlson (74) defends during the overtime period. The Washington Capitals went on win 2-1 in the overtime period against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game Six of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on May 7, 2018, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. The Capitals won the series 4-2 and advance to the Eastern Conference Final. (Photo by Jeanine Leech/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

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The NHL has released the home openers for all 31 teams. Some rivalries will be rekindled immediately, and we’re here to highlight the best ones.

Amidst the chaos that is the NHL offseason, the schedule release tends to slip somewhat under the radar. But that’s because it has to contend with stuff like the NHL Draft, start of free agency and NHL Awards. Teams look forward to it because that means they can start game-planning as soon as it drops.

Before the Awards kicked off, the NHL released the dates for every team’s home opener. With respect to Hurricanes and Islanders fans, some of the games are nothing to write home about. But we also have decades-long rivalries being renewed right at the start of the season.

Since the offseason can get old after a couple of weeks, now’s as good a time as any to start looking ahead to the best rivalry games to kick off the 2018-19 season:

LAS VEGAS, NV – JUNE 07: Zack Frongillo (L), representing the Washington Capitals, battles Lee Orchard as the Golden Knight during a pregame show before Game Five of the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Final between the Capitals and the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on June 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Capitals defeated the Golden Knights 4-3. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

5. Flyers vs. Golden Knights – Oct. 4, 2018

The Golden Knights are still in their infancy, and don’t have a real rival yet. However, after making the Stanley Cup Final in their first year, and winning a game, everyone will be interested to see what they have in store for an encore. And their first home game of the season will be against the Philadelphia Flyers.

While their play captivated audiences everywhere, the Golden Knights’ pre-game show during the playoffs was another big story. It’s easier for them to pull it off in the playoffs, since they only have to change the Knight’s opponent once every round, but we should expect another big show for the home opener. Considering they’re playing Philadelphia, there’s a lot of potential for stuff like the Knight throwing batteries at its opponent and attempting to climb a greased pole.

No matter what the Golden Knights do in the offseason, they should be entertaining to watch. The Flyers might genuinely believe they were a goaltender away from making a deep playoff run, so they have the potential to come back a much stronger team next season.

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