BUFFALO — Unlike this past season, the Buffalo Sabres will open their 2012-13 NHL regular season at home this year and will also close out their slate at home. Seven of Buffalo’s first 10 games are at home, as are five of its final eight.

The NHL released all 82-game, regular-season schedules for its 30 teams on Thursday.

While the Sabres opened “at home” in Europe last October and closed on the road in April, this fall, they’ll open with three straight home games at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, beginning at 7 p.m. on Oct. 13 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Detroit comes to town on Oct. 16, followed by the N.Y. Rangers on Oct. 19, featuring recent Vezina Trophy recipient from last season, goalie Henrik Lundqvist.

Other October home games has the Sabres hosting Stanley Cup finalist New Jersey on the 24th and Philadelphia on the 28th.

November ushers in the first “West Coast” road trip of the season, but six of the 12 games are at home — Phoenix (Nov. 1), Carolina (Nov. 3), Philadelphia (Nov. 16), Columbus (Nov. 21), Winnipeg (Nov. 27) and Vancouver (Nov. 29).

December will be the Sabres’ busiest month this season with 16 games on tap, with seven at home, including their almost-annual New Year’s Eve contest at the FN Center, this year against Ottawa (5 p.m. start). An odd, back-to-back, home-and-home series with the Montreal Canadiens is on tap less than 10 days apart on Dec. 6 and 8, as well as Dec. 15 and 17.

Buffalo has a dozen games in January, including Toronto’s first visit to Buffalo on Jan. 29. The Stanley Cup-champion Los   Angeles Kings will be in town just once this year — 7 p.m., Feb. 5 — highlighting Buffalo’s 13-game slate in

February.

A busy March has the Sabres on the road most of the time, with just five of their 14 games at home. Among those contests on   the road are matinee games at Pittsburgh (1 p.m.) on March 16 and at Washington (3 p.m.) the following day.

The Sabres finish with seven games in April, including four at home. The Sabres will close out their regular-season campaign  with home games against the Rangers on April 11 and the Boston Bruins on April 13.

The Buffalo Sabres’ 2012-13 NHL regular season schedule, with home games in caps, is as follows:

Oct. 13 PITTSBURGH 7 p.m.

Oct. 16 DETROIT 7 p.m.

Oct. 19 N.Y. RANGERS 7 p.m.

Oct. 20 @ N.Y. Islanders 7 p.m.

Oct. 24 NEW JERSEY 7:30 p.m.

Oct. 26 @ New Jersey 7 p.m.

Oct. 28 PHILADELPHIA 5 p.m.

Oct. 30 @ Boston 7 p.m.

Nov. 1 PHOENIX 7 p.m.

Nov. 3 CAROLINA 7 p.m.

Nov. 6 @ Philadelphia 7 p.m.

Nov. 8 @ San Jose 10:30 p.m.

Nov. 10 @ Phoenix 8 p.m. p.m.

Nov. 11 @ Anaheim 8 p.m.

Nov. 16 PHILADELPHIA 7 p.m.

Nov. 17 @ Philadelphia 7 p.m.

Nov. 21 COLUMBUS 7 p.m.

Nov. 24 @ N.Y. Islanders 7 p.m.

Nov. 27 WINNIPEG 7 p.m.

Nov. 29 VANCOUVER 7 p.m.



Dec. 1 @ Boston 7 p.m.

Dec. 3 @ Toronto 7 p.m.

Dec. 4 SAN JOSE 7 p.m.

Dec. 6 MONTREAL 7 p.m.

Dec. 8 @ Montreal 7 p.m.

Dec. 11 OTTAWA 7 p.m.

Dec. 13 CHICAGO 7 p.m.

Dec. 15 MONTREAL 7 p.m.

Dec. 17 @ Montreal 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 20 @ Edmonton 9:30 p.m.

Dec. 22 @ Calgary 10 p.m.

Dec. 23 @ Colorado 8 p.m.

Dec. 26 WASHINGTON 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 28 @ Minnesota, 8 p.m.

Dec. 29 @ Winnipeg 7 p.m.

Dec. 31 OTTAWA 5 p.m.

Jan. 3 FLORIDA 7 p.m.

Jan. 5 TAMPA BAY 7 p.m.

Jan. 8 @ N.Y. Rangers, 7 p.m.

Jan. 9 BOSTON 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 11 @ Ottawa, 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 13 @ Chicago 7 p.m.

Jan. 15 @ Ottawa 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 17 N.Y. ISLANDERS 7 p.m.

Jan. 19 CAROLINA 7 p.m.

Jan. 21 TAMPA BAY 7 p.m.

Jan. 29 TORONTO 7 p.m.

Jan. 31 @Carolina 7 p.m.

Feb. 3 ST. LOUIS 3:30 p.m.

Feb. 5 LOS ANGELES 7 p.m.

Feb. 6 @ Boston 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 8 BOSTON 7 p.m.

Feb. 10 OTTAWA 5 p.m.

Feb. 12 @ Ottawa 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 15 MONTREAL 7 p.m.

Feb. 17 PITTSBURGH 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 18 @ N.Y. Rangers 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 21 @ Washington 7 p.m.

Feb. 23 N.Y. ISLANDERS 7 p.m.

Feb. 26 @ Tampa Bay 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 28 @ Florida 7:30 p.m.

March 2 NASHVILLE 7 p.m.

March 5 @ Carolina 7 p.m.

March 7 @ New Jersey 7 p.m.

March 10 @ Pittsburgh 7 p.m.

March 12 FLORIDA 7 p.m.

March 14 @ Toronto 7 p.m.

March 16 @ Pittsburgh 1 p.m.

March 17 @ Washington 3 p.m.

March 19 TORONTO 7 p.m.

March 21 WINNIPEG 7 p.m.

March 23 @ Dallas 8 p.m.

March 26 @ Tampa Bay 7:30 p.m.

March 28 @ Florida 7:30 p.m.

March 30 WASHINGTON 7 p.m.

April 2 TORONTO 7 p.m.

April 4 NEW JERSEY 7 p.m.

April 6 @ Montreal 7 p.m.

April 8 @ Toronto 7 p.m.

April 9 @ Winnipeg 8 p.m.

April 11 N.Y. RANGERS 7 p.m.

April 13 BOSTON 7:30 p.m.