UBS Arena at Belmont Park will host its first NHL game on Nov. 20 when the Islanders face the Flames.
That just means the Islanders will open this coming season with a marathon 13-game road trip spread over five weeks, starting against the Hurricanes on Oct. 14, before finally moving into their state-of-the-art, $1.1 billion new home.
The Rangers will open their season on Oct. 13 at Washington before facing the Stars at Madison Square Garden the next night in their home opener.
The NHL released its schedule for the 2021-22 season on Thursday and it will be a return to normalcy in terms of the schedule’s length and dates, provided the league can complete it.