Since the beginning of the 2011-12 season, the Dallas Stars have been granted the luxury of beginning their regular season campaigns on home ice.
It all began on Oct. 7, 2011 when the Stars welcomed the Blackhawks to the American Airlines Center. During the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign, Dallas opened on home ice against the Arizona (though they were Phoenix back then) Coyotes.
2013 brought the Florida Panthers to the AAC to kickstart a new era of Dallas hockey, while 2014 once again pitted the Stars against the Blackhawks. 2015 saw the Pittsburgh Penguins come to town, 2016 pitted Dallas against the Anaheim Ducks on opening night, and 2017 brought the Vegas Golden Knights to the Lone Star State for their first game in franchise history.