It’s time to hit the books for another school year.
September also brings a return of major sporting events and, for some teams, the home stretch of their seasons.
Here’s a closer look at some of the games that Calgarians can look forward to in September:
HOCKEY
The top prospects with the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers will square off in the Next Gen Showcase Game at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Monday, Sept. 14th. Preseason NHL action for the Flames will follow with home games against the Seattle Kraken on Sunday, Sept. 20th and the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday, Sept. 22nd.
The Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League (WHL) are set to host their home opener against the Red Deer Rebels on Friday, Sept. 18th at the Saddledome.
Meanwhile, the Calgary Canucks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL), will hit home ice at Ken Bracko Arena on Saturday, Sept. 19th for a tilt against the Drumheller Dragons.
The University of Calgary Dinos and Mount Royal University (MRU) Cougars men’s hockey teams will engage in an exhibition game on Thursday, Sept. 17th ahead of their Canada West regular season schedule, which gets underway in October.
The women’s hockey teams with the Dinos and Cougars will take part in a home-and-home exhibition series in Calgary on Wednesday, Sept. 9th and Thursday, Sept. 10th.
FOOTBALL
The Labour Day Classic will give Canadian Football League (CFL) fans a chance to cheer on the Calgary Stampeders at McMahon Stadium on Monday, Sept. 7th when the West Division leading Edmonton Elks pay a visit.
The Stamps will follow that up with a visit to Edmonton on Saturday, Sept. 12th and they’ll return home to take on the Ottawa Redblacks on Saturday, Sept. 19th.
The September schedule also includes a pair of home dates for the University of Calgary Dinos, who welcome the UBC Thunderbirds on Friday, Sept. 4th and the University of Alberta Golden Bears on Friday, Sept. 25th.
SOCCER
The Cavalry Football Club (FC) have a busy month of action that includes a mix of road and home matches.
Canadian Premier League play will be on full display at ATCO Field in Spruce Meadows when the Forge FC visit on Saturday, Sept. 19th. That will be followed by another Calgary home matchup against FC Supra due Quebec on Friday, Sept. 25th.
Meanwhile, McMahon Stadium will open its doors to women’s professional soccer when the hometown Calgary Wild face the Halifax Tides on Saturday, Sept. 12th, followed by a Sunday, Sept. 27th contest featuring play between the Wild and the Vancouver Rise.
SPECIAL EVENTS
A number of special events celebrating sport will also take place in Calgary this month.
The 10th Anniversary Caribbean Heritage Sports Competition is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 11th and Saturday, Sept. 12th, with multi-sport events taking place at Calgary Rotary Challenger Park. Former track star Bruny Surin – an Olympic gold medal winner and member of Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame – will be the keynote speaker at a sports symposium on Friday night at the Marriott Hotel at 2530 48th Ave. N.E.
Sport Calgary’s annual Celebration of Sport will happen on Thursday, Sept. 17th at Spruce Meadows. That event includes networking and the presentation of grants and awards.
