New Panther Hoffman makes his return to Ottawa on Nov. 19

Circle Nov. 19 on your calendar. DALLAS

That’s the date former Ottawa Senators winger Mike Hoffman is expected to make his return to the Canadian Tire Centre.

The Senators will actually face Hoffman and the Florida Panthers before that Nov. 11 in Sunrise, Fla.

Hoffman, 28, was traded to San Jose Sharks Tuesday and was then immediately flipped to the Panthers.

The NHL released the full regular-season schedule Thursday. It shouldn’t be nearly as taxing for the Senators as was last year’s, which included a trip to Stockholm for two games against the Colorado Avalanche in November and an outdoor game at Lansdowne Park against the Montreal Canadiens in December.

Here are some other key schedule notes:

The Senators will play 16 sets of games on consecutive nights. Last season, they tied the Pittsburgh Penguins with a league-high 19 back-to-backs.

The longest homestand of the season will be from Oct. 10 to Oct. 22, comprising five games. The Senators will open the season at Canadian Tire Centre against the Chicago Blackhawks on Oct. 4.

The Senators will make their debut on Hockey Night in Canada on Oct. 6, in Toronto against the Maple Leafs.

Ottawa will make a trip back to Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum March 5 to face the New York Islanders at 7 p.m. in that club’s old/new home.

The Stanley Cup-champion Washington Capitals will visit Ottawa twice in the span of a week with games on Dec. 22 and Dec. 29.

The Senators will get their longest break in the schedule from Jan. 22 to Feb. 1. That will include the NHL All- Star Game break.