After welcoming the Capitals on opening night, Thursday, October 4 at PPG Paints Arena, the Penguins will then host the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday, October 6, and the Golden Knights on Thursday, October 11. All three games will begin at 7:00 PM. The three-game homestand ties for the Pens' longest of the season.

Pittsburgh Penguins' fans will have the opportunity to see the 2018 Stanley Cup Final combatants in the opening week of the 2018-19 regular season, as the Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights are two of the three teams the Pens will host during their season-opening three-game homestand.

Pittsburgh will play its first road game of the season on Saturday, October 13 when the Pens visit the Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre for a 7:00 PM faceoff.

Once again, the Penguins will play at home on Thanksgiving Eve. This year, the Pens will take on the Dallas Stars on Wednesday, November 21 at 7:00 PM. Another intriguing matchup, a visit from two-time defending NHL scoring champion Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers, will occur on Wednesday, February 13 at 8:00 PM.

Beginning with the October 6 matchup against Montreal, the Penguins will play seven Saturday night home games in '18-19. That list includes the Pens' first meeting of the season against the rival Philadelphia Flyers on December 1 at PPG Paints Arena.Paints Arena.

Pens' Saturday Night Home Games Day Date Time Opponent Saturday Oct. 6 7:00 PM Montreal Saturday Nov. 3 7:00 PM Toronto Saturday Nov. 10 7:00 PM Arizona Saturday Nov. 24 7:00 PM Columbus Saturday Dec. 1 7:00 PM Philadelphia Saturday Dec. 15 7:00 PM Los Angeles Saturday Apr. 6 7:00 PM NY Rangers

In addition to those seven Saturday night home games, the Penguins will have 11 more weekend home games on either a Friday night, Saturday afternoon or a Sunday.

Remaining Pens' Weekend Home Games Day Date Time Opponent Friday Dec. 14 7:00 PM Boston Friday Jan. 4 7:00 PM Winnipeg Sunday Jan. 6 8:00 PM Chicago Friday Feb. 1 7:00 PM Ottawa Saturday Feb. 16 1:00 PM Calgary Sunday Feb. 17 12:30 PM NY Rangers Sunday Mar. 10 7:30 PM Boston Saturday Mar. 16 1:00 PM St. Louis Sunday Mar. 17 7:30 PM Philadelphia Friday Mar. 29 7:00 PM Nashville Sunday Mar. 31 5:00PM Carolina

For fans who enjoy watching the Penguins battle against their traditional Metropolitan Division rivals, below are the dates when each Metro club will visit PPG Paints Arena.

Pens' Home Games Versus Metropolitan Division Rivals

Carolina Hurricanes

Tuesday, February 5 7:00 PM

Sunday, March 31 5:00 PM

Columbus Blue Jackets

Saturday, November 24 7:00 PM

Thursday, March 7 7:00 PM

New Jersey Devils

Monday, November 5 7:00 PM

Monday, January 28 7:00 PM

New York Islanders

Tuesday, October 30 7:00 PM

Thursday, December 6 7:00 PM

New York Rangers

Sunday, February 17 12:30 PM

Saturday, April 6 7:00 PM

Philadelphia Flyers

Saturday, December 1 7:00 PM

Sunday, March 17 7:30 PM

Washington Capitals

Thursday, October 4 7:00 PM

Tuesday, March 12 7:00 PM

Pittsburgh's longest road trip will be a five-game journey beginning Friday, January 11 in Anaheim, and continuing through Los Angeles (Jan. 12), San Jose (Jan. 15), Arizona (Jan. 18) and Vegas (Jan. 19).

On Saturday, February 23, the Penguins will skate outdoors for the fifth time in franchise history when they travel across the commonwealth to visit the Flyers at Lincoln Financial Field as part of the 2019 Coors Light Stadium series. Game time will be at 8:00 PM. Two seasons ago, the Pens defeated the Flyers, 4-2, outdoors at Heinz Field. Lincoln Financial Field is home to the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles.

Last year, the Penguins played an NHL-high (tied) 19 sets of back-to-back games. This year, that challenge won't be as daunting, as the Pens will play on consecutive nights just 11 times. The first back-to-back situation in '18-19 doesn't occur until November 23-24, when the Penguins follow a visit to Boston with a home game against Columbus.

Included in those 11 back-to-back situations are three instances where the Penguins will play consecutive home games.

Pens' Back-to-Back Home Games on Consecutive Days Day Date Time Opponent Day Date Time Opponent Friday Dec. 14 7:00 PM Boston Saturday Dec. 15 7:00 PM Los Angeles Saturday Feb. 16 1:00 PM Calgary Sunday Feb. 17 12:30 PM NY Rangers Saturday Mar. 16 1:00 PM St. Louis Sunday Mar. 17 7:30 PM Philadelphia

This year's road slate features a blast from the past, as the Penguins will face the New York Islanders at Nassau Coliseum in Long Island on Monday, December 10 at 7:00 PM. Pittsburgh last visited Nassau Coliseum, the Islanders' home from 1972-2015, on Jan. 16, 2015 (NYI won, 6-3).

The Penguins will play the other seven teams in the Metropolitan Division four times each (twice at home & twice on the road). Pittsburgh plays teams in the Atlantic Division three times each, and the Pens will face all 15 Western Conference teams twice each, once at home and once on the road.

The Atlantic Division teams the Pens will host twice at home, and visit once on the road, are: Boston, Detroit, Florida and Tampa Bay.

The Atlantic Division teams the Penguins will play once at home, and twice on the road, are: Buffalo, Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto.

Last week, the Penguins announced their 2018-19 preseason schedule.