The outdoor movement

The Winter Classic is one of six outdoor NHL games next season.
Logo courtesy of nhlpa.com

The National Hockey League seems fixated on making outdoor games the norm.

With Wednesday's announcement that the Vancouver Canucks will host the Ottawa Senators at BC Place (rather than Rogers Arena) on March 2, the league will play six games outside of traditional arenas -- five in the United States, and one in Canada.

Expanding the number of outdoor games per season was inevitable, especially with the league still trying to recover from this past season's lockout that eliminated the annual New Year's Day Winter Classic. In Gary Bettman's world, if something is successful, why not do it over and over again until you nearly beat it into the ground?

I like the uniqueness of the Winter Classic. The NHL takes over a massive stadium, plops down a rink where a football field or a baseball diamond should be and turns it into a winter wonderland for a week's worth of festivities including public skating and an alumni game. It's a great way to celebrate hockey's history.



The question is, will the uniqueness wear off before Vancouver and Ottawa meet inside BC Place? After the New Year's Day game between Detroit and Toronto at Michigan Stadium, we get the bizarre sight of the Los Angeles Kings hosting the Anaheim Ducks at Dodger Stadium on Jan. 25. The most interesting aspect of that game is the potential of the ice surface turning into mush in the Southern California sun.

The scene then shifts to Yankee Stadium, where the New York Rangers host the New Jersey Devils Jan. 26 and the New York Islanders Jan. 29. This will be the best opportunity most non season ticket-holding Rangers fans have to see their team in action, as long as they don't mind sitting at the top of the upper deck. From that vantage point, they might have a better view of The Bronx than the games.

The final outdoor game in the United States is March 1 when Pittsburgh visits Chicago at Soldier Field. It's a marquis match-up between two of the top teams in the league at a time of the year when Chi-town weather varies from snowy to stormy. But, will the average hockey fan be as fascinated with the location as they will be for the match-up? This may be the first time where people look forward to seeing the two teams play more so than where they are playing.

Canada's Heritage Classic is the one outdoor game I know that most American hockey fans will likely ignore. Neither team has a high profile in the States, and west coast games rarely generate buzz on the east coast. Even the fact that it will be the first NHL game played in a stadium with a retractable roof won't likely pique anyone's interest below the 49th parallel. It will do great business in Canada, though, and that's what matters the most to the organizers.

What will be the most interesting aspect is the TV ratings for these outdoor games. I'm willing to bet the Winter Classic will get the most viewers, while the other four U.S. games will see numbers more in line with a typical regular season broadcast. Just because the other four games are outside doesn't mean the average American sports fan will be any more interested than if they were played inside.

Ultimately, I'd rather see the NHL go back to having only one outdoor game a year, but I know that won't be the case. Not when the league seems determined to use the one gimmick it has to promote itself to a wider audience.

So, get used to the sight of outdoor hockey games. It's the wave of the NHL's future.