UpNorth:
For the first game of the year it's very easy to get tickets to the game from TM. I've done so successfully every year since 2007, the exception being 2009. In 2009 I gave up on the Wednesday before the game, after getting the runaround from the Athletic Ticket Office all week. This was a mistake. They eventually released tickets on the Friday before the game.
Your gameplan to get tickets this year would be to start checking for tickets a week before the game, every morning at 8:00 AM. My guess is they would release them on Monday the 30th, Tuesday the 31st, or Wednesday the 1st, but most likely on Monday. You can buy up to 4 tickets at once. I do this every year and have gotten great seats. Don't fret, just have a backup plan in place if for some reason they're not released.