Coventry Blaze Ice Hockey team start their 2012/13 Elite League campaign ith a trip to Dundee Stars on Saturday September 8.
Blaze then take on Fife Flyers for their first match at the Skydome the following night (5.15pm face-off).
The club had a 100% record over Stars last season, including three successive shut-outs in Dundee, while they won five of their six meetings with Flyers.
Coach Paul Thompson said to the Blaze website: “We will be fully focused on beginning with a four-point weekend.
“What we did in Dundee and against Fife or any other team last season goes out of the window, it means nothing now. It is a new season and a fresh start.”
Nottingham Panthers visit the Skydome two days before Christmas and Blaze then head to Cardiff Devils on Boxing Day, with the teams meeting again in Coventry 24 hours later.
A trip to Sheffield Steelers on December 30 is followed by a home date with the South Yorkshire side on New Year’s Day.
Thompson added: “We will have a big, tough team this year and anyone who comes into the Skydome will have to work extremely hard for the points.
“We will have a team with character and experience and players who are excited to be here and all the vibes are positive. We have a new team who will be ready and focused for the challenges ahead.”
Thompson is also looking for a change of fortunes in the Challenge Cup, which Blaze last lifted in the 2006/07 season.
Blaze are again in a group with holders Panthers, Steelers, Devils and Hull Stingrays, with the top four progressing to the quarter-finals in a change to the format.
Thompson said: “We have been really disappointing in the Challenge Cup in the last few years. We won it twice and lost in a final and for a few years we were quite dominant so I am hoping for a better start this time and to make the next round.”
Full fixtures can be seen by clicking on http://www.coventryblaze.co.uk/fixtures_elite.php