Otters to Play Six Preseason Games Ahead of 2024-25 Ontario Hockey League Season
Erie, Pennsylvania – Competitive hockey is just over two months away for the Erie Otters, as the Ontario Hockey League announced preseason scheduling for
all 20 member teams today. Preseason games mark the formal start of the 2024-25 season across the OHL.
For the third time in team-history, the Otters will play in six preseason games spanning the month of September. Erie will kick off their preseason campaign Labor Day weekend in Kitchener, ON. as they will open the schedule with a rematch of last season’s first-round playoff matchup, battling the Kitchener Rangers on Friday, August 30 at 7:00 P.M. Erie will also open their regular season schedule with a trip to the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium on September 27.
The second game of the preseason will see the Otters take on the Brantford Bulldogs in Kitchener on Saturday, August 31 at 2:00 P.M. This will be the third year in a row that the Otters and Bulldogs clash in preseason play.
For the fourth year in a row, the Otters will close out the opening weekend of the preseason with an all-American battle with the Saginaw Spirit on Sunday, September 1 at 11:00 A.M. This will be the final game of the three-game weekend in Kitchener. Last season, the Otters and Spirit, the reigning Memorial Cup winners, split their four-game regular season series, with each team winning two games.
The following weekend, the Otters will head to London to battle the Midwest Division rival London Knights in what has become a familiar preseason series, on September 6 and 7. The game on Friday, September 6 at 7:00 P.M. will take place at Budweiser Gardens and serve as the Otters’ first trip to the home of the Knights ahead of three regular season trips, as well as the first time, rivals Erie and London collide ahead of the 2024-25 regular season.
On Saturday, September 7, the Otters and Knights will wrap up their preseason series. The location and start time for this game are still to be determined. Erie will be the designated home team for this contest, though the game will be held at a neutral site.
After a weekend of rest, the Otters will play their final preseason game of 2024 with a neutral-site game in Dunnville, ON. at Dunnville Memorial Arena with a rare preseason matchup with the Oshawa Generals on Friday, September 20 at 7:30 P.M. The game will serve as a homecoming for Otters over-age forward Sam Alfano, who grew up close-by in Cayuga, ON. This will serve as the final tune-up for the Otters ahead of the 2024-25 OHL regular season.
General Manager Dave Brown spoke with excitement about the closely-approaching return of hockey, headlined by the month of September’s preseason excitement.
”Exhibition games play a significant role in a very important phase of your organization’s season,” said Brown. “It’s an excellent opportunity to get young players in unique positions to see how they will react to situations at the Junior level where returning players can get important reps in new roles.”
2024 ERIE OTTERS PRESEASON SCHEDULE
Designated “home” team is listed in bold. Game location is listed in italics.
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Friday, August 30
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Erie Otters at Kitchener Rangers I 7:00 P.M. I Kitchener Memorial Auditorium, Kitchener, ON
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Saturday, August 31
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Erie Otters vs Brantford Bulldogs I 2:00 P.M. I Kitchener Memorial Auditorium, Kitchener, ON
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Sunday, September 1
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Erie Otters vs Saginaw Spirit I 11:00 A.M. I Kitchener Memorial Auditorium, Kitchener, ON
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Friday September 6
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Erie Otters at London Knights I 7:00 P.M. I Budweiser Gardens, London, ON
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Saturday September 7
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London Knights vs Erie Otters I TBA I TBA
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Friday, September 20
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Oshawa Generals vs Erie Otters I 7:30 P.M. I Dunnville Memorial Arena, Dunnville, ON
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2024 ERIE OTTERS PRESEASON SCHEDULE
|
Date
|
Away
|
Home
|
Time
|
Venue
|
|
Fri, Aug 30
|
ER
|
KIT
|
7:00 P.M.
|
Kitchener Memorial Auditorium I Kitchener, ON
|
|
Sat, Aug 31
|
ER
|
BFD
|
2:00 P.M.
|
Kitchener Memorial Auditorium I Kitchener, ON
|
|
Sun, Sep 1
|
ER
|
SAG
|
11:00 A.M.
|
Kitchener Memorial Auditorium I Kitchener, ON
|
|
Fri, Sep 6
|
ER
|
LDN
|
7:00 P.M.
|
Budweiser Gardens I London, ON
|
|
Sat, Sep 7
|
LDN
|
ER
|
TBA |
TBA
|
|
Fri, Sep 20
|
OSH
|
ER
|
7:30 P.M.
|
Dunnville Memorial Arena I Dunnville, ON
|
The Otters organization is thrilled to return hockey to downtown Erie for the 28th season. The full promotional schedule, including day-specific themes, theme nights, and giveaways will be released in the coming weeks by the organization. Information on the team’s forthcoming Training Camp will be announced soon.
Don’t miss a single moment of the new year of Otters Hockey; 2024-25 Full Season Tickets are on sale now.
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To see the complete 2024-25 Otters schedule, head to OttersHockey.com/schedule or on OntarioHockeyLeague.com.
For the latest Otters news, visit OttersHockey.com, or follow the team on Facebook (Facebook.com/erieottershockey), Twitter (@ErieOtters), and Instagram (@ErieOtters).
For further information on the Erie Otters and for media inquiries, please contact Shawn Bednard at [email protected] or Trevor Kubeja at [email protected]
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