Sabres bond during Bayern Munich soccer stadium tour in Germany

MUNICH -- JJ Peterka stood just off the pitch, his back turned to the grass, staring in at 18 of his Buffalo Sabres teammates in the cushy, comfortable, covered seats, pretending almost as if they were FC Bayern Munich's substitute players, all sitting in the dugout.

For Peterka, this was a moment for a memory bank that is filling up this week.

In front of him were his NHL teammates who he joined on a tour of Allianz Arena, the home of Munich's legendary 124-year-old football club, and behind him was a field of dreams for a local guy and huge fan of the most decorated team in Germany's Bundesliga.

"It's pretty cool," Peterka said. "It's a little different from watching in the stands. Standing on the grass was so cool. Seeing it from a different perspective like that, yeah, not bad at all."

Peterka was on the original list of four Sabres players who were locked in to go on the tour of Allianz Arena, to see the dugout, get close to the pitch, get in FC Bayern Munich's locker room, walk the hallway to the steps that lead down to the tunnel that takes the players on the field, always side by side their opponent, the officials in between.

Rasmus Dahlin-- named Sabres captain on Thursday -- Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Henri Jokiharju were also on the original list. It was supposed to be a small group until word spread of what was happening.

In total, 19 players boarded a bus after Buffalo's practice at SAP Garden on Thursday in advance of their game against EHC Red Bull Munchen in the 2024 NHL Global Series Challenge Germany at SAP Garden (2:30 p.m. ET; NHLN).

They took the 20-minute ride down the road to Allianz Arena for the stadium tour.

It left an impression.

"This is nice," Dahlin said. "Never seen one like this before."

The players and other Sabres and NHL staff members who were in attendance were joined by a tour guide, who unlocked the gate and immediately took the group down through the lower level of seats, through the gate to the field and into the dugout area where the substitutes sit.

Many players had their phones out to video or take pictures as they walked down.

"Dude, I would put my head right through this if the coach yelled my name to get out there," defenseman Bowen Byram said, laughing at the low depth of the roof of the dugout.

The players liked the red seats. They're padded, thick, wide and comfortable with the FC Bayern logo. They look like leather car seats.

"I could play six minutes a night if I am sitting in one of these," forward Beck Malenstyn said. "Perfect."

The players were given some information on the stadium, such as its seating capacity of 75,024, which makes it the second largest stadium in Germany, and why the south corner is the most interesting part of the stadium because that's where they pack 9,336 fans into the standing room only area.

From the dugout, the players went back up the lower level of seats, onto the concourse and through doors that led to the hallway the home team players walk through to get to the stairs that lead down to the tunnel and onto the pitch.

The hallway is lined with pictures of current FC Bayern Munich players.

The FCB players were not available to meet the Sabres because they were training for their upcoming match at home Saturday against Bayer 04 Leverkusen, a battle of the top two teams in the Bundesliga; Bayern Munich is first and Leverkusen is second.

Bayern Munich's training ground, The Säbener Strasse, is located on the south side of Munich about a 30-40 minute drive from Allianz Arena.

"I would love to see their practice facility," Dahlin said.

Said Peterka, "I would have loved to see the gym to be honest, but I like the tunnel. I like it a lot when they go down there and they walk back up again. Just walking down there is pretty special. You see your opponent, they're walking right next to you and it's so competitive. That would be cool to walk out and see our opponents right next to us. You look up and you see the whole building. I can't imagine the feeling."

The Sabres players walked the hallway and looked around. They went through the doors and took pictures by the stairs. They then went back inside, down the same hallway and into the FC Bayern Munich locker room.

Not surprisingly, goalies Luukkonen and Devon Levi immediately went to the goalie stalls, noticing the blue jerseys. All the other position players had their red jerseys set up on hangers in their stalls.

The tour continued from the locker room to the nearly 36,000-square-foot FC Bayern Munich Museum located inside Allianz Stadium that features artifacts and exhibits from every decade of the club's 124-year history.

"It's cool to see all the old teams, all the old trophies with pictures from players they had back in the day," Peterka said. "For me it was cool, but obviously I'm a fan of the recent teams."

At times, Peterka was explaining to his teammates what they were looking at.

Jokiharju took a picture of a photograph on the wall that featured Pasi Rautiainen, a famous Finnish football player, manager and analyst who appeared in one game with FC Bayern Munich in the 1980-81 season.

"It was a really nice experience and to see all the trophies here, I just really love it," Jokiharju said. "I have watched Bayern games a lot in the past and I'll still continue. Maybe I'll come here on Saturday."

The tour ended with the players going back to the staircase leading to the tunnel for a photo opportunity.

Peterka held up a FC Bayern Munich jersey with the number 24, for the year 2024, and "Sabres" written on the back. Dahlin held up a Sabres blue home sweater with FC Bayern as the nameplate and the number 24.

Peterka was also given his own FC Bayern Munich jersey with his name on the back. It'll add to his collection. He said he has gotten a new FCB jersey before every season for the past five years. He just doesn't wear them in Buffalo.

"I mean, to be honest, outside of the rink it's usually too cold," he said. "I wear them a lot when I'm playing soccer here with my buddies."