It's almost Hockey Night!

It seems a little odd to be going into opening weekend of the college hockey season and not have a Friday-night game to cover.

As the late, great Tom Petty sang: The waiting is the hardest part!

The Mavericks open things up on Saturday night at the Verizon Center against in-state rival St. Cloud State. Should be a good one, hopefully in front of a big crowd.

Speaking of big crowds, be warned that security might slow entry into the arena, so plan accordingly:

A reminder from @VerizonCenterMN policy regarding entry to Minnesota State hockey games. pic.twitter.com/VhLyV7fPTi

— Minn. St. Athletics (@msumavericks) October 3, 2017

Saturday is also Hockey Night in Mankato and, outside the Verizon, there will be live music, food vendors and other activities from 4:30 to 7 p.m.

Some WCHA teams are in action tonight, as Ferris State plays at Western Michigan, Lake Superior State hosts Northern Michigan (in nonconference play), Alabama Huntsville goes to Notre Dame, Alaska Anchorage hosts North Dakota and Alaska hosts Air Force. Michigan Tech is playing in the IceBreaker tournament in Duluth against Union today and against either UMD or Minnesota on Saturday.