I guess you could say I come from a family of hockey fans. My entire family has a love for the Pittsburgh Penguins, a love that is rather young compared to some fan's stories of being season ticket holders for over 20 years, as my family has only been fans since 2010, but love for the team is love for the team. When it came time for me to decide where to go to school, it definitely helped that my school was within walking distance of Consol Energy Center. I mean hell, I can walk to Consol in seven minutes from my dorm. I see the facade of Consol every day on my way to class, and thinking about all the great games I’ve seen there, the atmosphere in the building when I attended my first ever playoff game, the giant picture of the Stanley Cup emblazoned on the corner of the building with the phrase “Welcome Back, Old Friend” next to it, it gets me thinking as I’m running to class in the morning…

“Is it October yet?”

After what has seemed like an eternity, it is finally less than one month until the start of hockey season here in Pittsburgh, and I know I’m probably not the only one who is thinking this way, but I am anticipating opening night like a small child waits for Christmas morning. Except as opposed to anticipating the latest and greatest toys, I’m anticipating the unveiling of a banner celebrating the Penguins as champions, and the return of the best team in hockey. In less than a month, the banner celebrating the 2015-16 championship will be raised to the rafters in Consol Energy Center, and the puck will drop on the fiftieth season of Penguins hockey. It’s a season that’ll be filled with many memorable events to commemorate the anniversary, from five theme nights throughout the year celebrating Penguins teams from years past, to the NHL Stadium Series at Heinz Field in February versus cross state rivals Philadelphia.

But perhaps the most exciting part of this season, is that the Penguins will start the season carrying over most of the roster from last season, a rarity in the current NHL with the current salary cap situation and annual turnover on NHL rosters. But the Penguins deserve credit, as the work of General Manager Jim Rutherford built a strong roster that was able to get hot under new Head Coach Mike Sullivan and, in the words of the coach himself, “Just Play”. It became the Pens playoff mantra, as the team took down any and all opposition in their way behind a rookie goaltender that only played thirteen NHL games before going 15-6 in the playoffs and a line that was so good on the ice, Primanti Bros. in Pittsburgh named a sandwich after them. This team is as ready as any defending champion in the salary cap era to defend their title, and carrying over a majority of the team that won it the first time will definitely help the Penguins in pursuit of their fifth Stanley Cup.

So get out your black and gold jerseys, buy your tickets (or bookmark the Student Rush page if you’re like me), and get ready to party hard on a Hockey Night in Pittsburgh.