The University of Regina's men's hockey team plays its first two games at the new Co-Operators Centre this weekend, as they'll host the Saskatchewan Huskies tonight and Saturday at 7 p.m.

Tickets - $12 for adults and $6 for students and seniors - are available at the door.

The Cougars will not only be playing at a new rink this year, but their roster will be featuring a completely different look as well – head coach Blaine Sautner recruited 10 newcomers to the team, one of the largest incoming classes in program history.

Leading the returning players is second-year forward Craig Cuthbert, who scored a team-high 16 points last season as a rookie. Mark Nelson (14 points in 25 games) also returns, while hard-luck fourth-year forward Dillon Johnstone (10 points in 17 games) will look to have his first injury-free season on campus.

Sautner will be counting on a troika of incoming forwards to help bolster the offence. Brett Leffler, a 2007 draft pick of the Washington Capitals, scored a career-high 57 points in his five-season career with the Regina Pats. Matt Strueby's three seasons alongside Leffler in the Pats were highlighted by his 37-goal campaign last year, while Terrance DeLaronde has been stellar for the Cougars in non-conference action as he gets back into the game for the first time since spending the 2008-09 season with the University of Manitoba.

Team captain Ryan Bender will anchor Regina's blue line alongside Adam McPherson. Sautner will also count on returners Russ Nielsen, Cody Thoring, and Brandon Blair, while Jordan Reeve (Melville Millionaires) is the lone incoming defencemen in his recruiting class.

With the departure of Brant Hilton to the CHL's Mississippi RiverKings, fifth-year goaltender Adam Ward enters the season as the Cougars' No. 1 starter. Ward, who has a 3.32 goals-against average and a .888 save percentage in his four seasons with the Cougars, will be backed up by second-year goalie Shayne Barrie and rookie #A.J. Whiffen# (Weyburn Red Wings).

Saskatchewan's top returner is former Cougar forward Kyle Ross, who piled up a team-high 22 assists for the Huskies last season. Brennan Bosch and Chris Durand will also play a key role in Saskatchewan's offence.

On the blue line, the Huskies lose Canada West all-star Chad Greenan but return Matt Swaby, Jesse Zetariuk, and Zach Sim. Second-year goalie David Reekie is expected to get the call between the pipes for Saskatchewan, which was picked to finish third in the recent Canada West preseason coaches' poll.

The two teams met six times last season, with Saskatchewan winning four of them.

The Cougars will travel to Winnipeg for a pair of games against Manitoba last weekend, while Saskatchewan will have a week off before playing the Cougars again on Oct. 15 and Oct. 16.