"The easiest way to explain the emotions, Robyn Regehr said, is to imagine you're the new kid in school. The faces are unfamiliar, the course load is alien and the scenery is strange. Yet beneath the anxiety, there is a thrill of anticipation, an eagerness to learn fresh things.

Classes start this week for Regehr and the rest of the Buffalo Sabres.

The 2011-12 NHL season begins Friday when the Sabres formally arrive in town for physicals. They'll take the ice for the first time Saturday in Northtown Center at Amherst.

"For me, it's quite a bit different than a lot of the players that are returning," said Regehr, one of the Sabres' prime additions during the offseason. "Just being a part of a whole new team for me, with the new players, new coach, new city ... I'm looking forward to all of it.""