I am in Florida where it is 80 degrees and was in my shorts and t-shirt watching the Winter Classic with my family. We were all wishing we were freezing and outside watching the game in person at Wrigley Field.
I thought the event was a huge hit. It was a great game with a great venue and the NBC camera work was spectacular. The announcers were great. The game was fun. It was a perfect event for the NHL. Well done. Bravo. A great day for hockey. We have stolen the spotlight from college football. Our game has a much bigger event look and feel than any bowl game on that day and date now. Imagine that.
And before you ask, of course we have asked the league about our participating in a Winter Classic but so has every other team in the NHL. The league has done a great service here to the teams. We all want to participate. It would be so much fun for our fans and players.
I’m sure you saw this discussion on ESPN. Looks like your lobbying efforts are working. Keep it up!
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3805344
Caps vs. Rangers, January 1, 2010, RFK Stadium in Washington, DC.
And in the spirit of throwback uniforms, maybe we could even dust off the infamous white pants for one game???
ted-i must disagree,as mich as i love hockey, i do not think hockey stole the spotlight from our big event here in southern california, the grandaddy of them all…the rose bowl….if you have not seen the tournament of roses parade in person you have missed something special and the game is great too.
i loved the classic however, but dc will not get to host that game for years…not cold enough there (except when i visit) and very small likelihood of snowglobe effect for tv. although the reflecting pool might make an interesting rink.
the next classic will probably involve the bruins and rangers…two orginal six teams in big u.s. tv markets…probably from fenway….but if caps win cup who knows!
While DC might not be one’s first choice for a game – how about having it on the national mall? That would be epic.
I thought it was pretty bad compared to previous ventures. The commentary was even worse with ubiquitous Harry Carrey mentions. The layout of Wrigley wasn’t really suited to hockey. The whole changing ends at 10mins just made it feel like an exhibition game. I think the outdoor game may have jumped the shark.
The outdoor game is wonderful! We missed most of the Winter Classic last year because the Caps were playing an afternoon game, but we were able to enjoy a double-header yesterday, watching the Winter Classic before heading to the Caps game. I think it appeals to hockey neophytes, and I think that is all for the good of the NHL. I think it would be great if the Caps played the Rangers at the new Yankees stadium next January. I’d love it if it could be played at the foot of the US Capitol on the Mall, but our weather conditions probably would make such a a venue impractical — but who knows? Imagine the visual of a hockey game played in the midst of such iconic monuments!
Ted, you are right on. The outdoor game has a look and feel to it that reminds me of hours I spent on the ice, playing or reffing. It provides more interesting views than the average game(I particularly enjoyed the views from the corners, where I spent so many games as a ref), and there’s something about the lighting, and watching the light change as the day lengthened that’s just so cool. It’s also the game that gets the most play from media that don’t normally pay much attention to hockey, and positive comments from commentators all around. While DC isn’t the best place for such a game, I’d certainly travel to see the Caps play outdoors.
I couldn’t disagree more. The outdoor game is an abomination and makes hockey look like a rinky dink sport. You don’t see the NFL playing arena games do you? The whole thing just perpetuates the image of the NHL as not being a serious league.