NHL Heritage Classic to be Outdoors in Canada
Next season’s NHL Heritage Classic will be held outdoors in Canada. Next February, Calgary’s McMahon Stadium will be the host to the Heritage Classic.
This will mark the first time since 2003 when the Montreal Canadians hosted the Edmonton Oilers that the Heritage Classic was held on Canadian soil. The NHL is making an effort to honor the great outdoor tradition, and is going back to its roots in Canada for the first time in seven years.
Next years’ game will feature two Canadian teams, which are the Montreal Canadiens against the Calgary Flames at the McMahon Stadium in Calgary. This stadium houses 35,650 fans to experience the exciting ice hockey action. However, using this stadium as a venue poses many questions.
The main question is whether or not it will be too cold for an outdoor, mid-February game in Canada. The NHL commissioner, Gary Bettman addressed this issue, and admitted that if the weather was too harsh, that the game would move indoors to the Pengrowth Saddledome. However, this is very unlikely as it has never occurred that an outdoor game must be moved to indoors.
Despite all of the doubts, the 2011 NHL Heritage Classic will be held in Canada next February, and is sure to feature an exciting matchup!
Tickets are not on sale yet, but you can sign up to be notified by Select A Ticket when NHL Heritage Classic Tickets become on sale!