The Gulls will begin the season as the defending Pacific Division Champs for the first time since they moved to San Diego. Now the Gulls will face tough competition as everybody will want to beat the best in the division. Here are the most notable games of the year:

The Gulls will begin the preseason with two games against the top rival, Ontario Reign, on September 26 and 30. Thursday’s match will begin at 10 AM with San Diego as the road team. The Gulls will play as the home team in Monday’s 7 PM game.

The season officially begins on Friday, October 4 as the Gulls start off the year against the regular season Pacific Division champs, the Bakersfield Condors. Last season, the Gulls won 6 of 10 games between the two teams, with one loss in shootouts.

San Diego will continue their season opening road trip to San Jose where they will face the Barracuda for the first time since defeating them 3 games to 1 in the AHL Playoffs. The Gulls had great success against them last year, winning 6 of 10, and 3-2 on the road.

The Gulls will also travel to Stockton before playing in their home opener, two weeks after the season began. Friday, October 18, the Gulls will play the second game of the season series between the two teams, with puck drop at 7 PM. The Heat won the season series last season, going 5-3 against San Diego.

Friday, October 25, the Gulls and Reign will play in the regular season for the first time at the Pechanga Arena San Diego. The two rivals played 12 games head-to-head in the 2018-19 season, and the Gulls came out victorious in 8 of those games, outscoring Ontario 56 goals to 41, and winning 6 of the last 7 games.

San Diego’s non division opponents include the Grand Rapids Griffins (home Dec. 17; away Jan. 24-25) and the Iowa Wild (home Jan. 8-10; away Feb. 14-15). Both teams are a part of the AHL’s Central Division. Both Grand Rapids and Iowa lost to the Wolves in the postseason, who eventually defeated the Gulls as well and became Western Conference champions.

The final home stand of the season will begin Wednesday, April 1, against the Stockton Heat, with the final home game of the year on Friday, April 3 against the Gulls’ top rival, the Ontario Reign.

The final game of the regular season will be played on Saturday, April 11 in Colorado vs the Eagles. However, the Gulls hope this will not be the final game of the year as they try to make it two straight years in which they make the postseason.