AHL

Here are the things to know heading into Sunday's season opener for the newest team in the American Hockey League.

We saw just last season with the Kraken, who finished their inaugural season 27-49-6, that it takes time for an entirely new roster of players to have success together in a new arena, in a new city and in a new organization. How that affects the Firebirds during the first half of the season will be something to watch. During Bylsma’s run as head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins, he developed a reputation for making quick offensive adjustments in a scheme that emphasized speed and creativity. That is the early expectation Bylsma has for his team. Olofsson and Tennyson have each played for stretches in the NHL. Bylsma believes several other players have a chance to eventually play prominent roles in the lineup. But there’s still a lot of mystery about this team and what it will look like on the ice both this weekend and when the Firebirds play their first game in the valley at Acrisure Arena on Dec. McCormick, Poturalski and Lind are just three of the offensive players who’ll contribute to an aggressive, exciting offensive scheme that has helped several of Bylsma’s past teams find success. Even with so much uncertainty, Bylsma has an idea of which players will make up the core of his team, at least early in the season. They'll play two "home" games in Seattle, but the first 22 games will be played away from the Coachella Valley. Last season with the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers, the 5-foot-11 left wing played in 46 games, scored 13 times and added 16 assists. Following months of anticipation, the Coachella Valley Firebirds will open their inaugural season in the American Hockey League on Sunday in Calgary.