Toronto, Ont. – The Ontario Hockey League today announced the regular season schedule of games for 2023-24.
The 2023-24 OHL season gets underway on Thursday, September 28th as the reigning champion Peterborough Petes raise their J. Ross Robertson Cup championship banner prior to puck drop against the Kingston Frontenacs. The Barrie Colts will also be at home on opening night, playing host to the Central Division rival North Bay Battalion.
The Battalion, Ottawa 67’s and London Knights will raise their respective 2022-23 banners ahead of their home openers on Friday, September 29th.
The OHL returns to Brantford for the first time in nearly 40 years on Saturday, October 7th as the Bulldogs enter a new chapter when they drop the puck for their home opener against the Oshawa Generals.
Key dates on the schedule include the lone 10-game night with all 20 member teams in action coming right out of the gate on Friday, September 29th. The calendar includes a total of eight other dates with nine games on the schedule including the league’s return from the holiday break on Thursday, December 28th, as well as Family Day on Monday, February 19th. The final date of the regular season schedule is Sunday, March 24th.
Following the conclusion of the 2024 OHL Playoffs, the 2024 Memorial Cup comes to Saginaw, Mich. from May 25th through June 4th as the Spirit become the OHL’s first-ever American-based franchise to host the Canadian Hockey League’s annual national championship. The additional major CHL national event on the 2023-24 schedule is set for January 24th when the Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game takes place in Moncton, NB.
Divisional alignment remains the same for 2023-24 with a 68-game unbalanced schedule. Teams will play out of conference opponents a minimum of two times (one home, one away) while the majority of teams play intra-conference teams a minimum of four times including two games at home and two on the road. Intra-divisional teams will play each other up to six times and in a number of cases, closest rivals will play each other up to eight times.
The OHL continues the tradition of being primarily a weekend league in order to accommodate families and the student athlete with over 86% (585 games) of the schedule played between Thursday and Sunday. Friday night remains an OHL fixture with 192 games scheduled, followed by 168 games on Saturdays and 133 on Sundays.
Day – No. of Games (Percentage)
Monday: 15 games (2.2%)
Tuesday: 14 games (2.1%)
Wednesday: 66 games (9.7%)
Thursday: 92 games (13.5%)
Friday: 192 games (28.2%)
Saturday: 168 games (24.7%)
Sunday: 133 games (19.6%)
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