The Blues beat the Blackhawks 4-1 in yesterday's Bridgestone Winter Classic "in front of a sellout crowd of 46,556" at Busch Stadium, according to Ben Frederickson of the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. An official delay was "never announced, but misting rain and fog pushed back the start of the game" from noon to 12:32pm CT. The precipitation "gathered on players' shields and caused some to worry that the pace would suffer" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 1/3). In St. Louis, Rutherford & Timmermann note the "consensus was that the ice conditions at Busch Stadium improved after a soggy first period." Blues D Alex Pietrangelo said, "The first was tough, obviously, with the rain. It was tough when sticks get wet. Everything’s puddling around. But I think once the rain stopped in the second period, everything froze over. It actually wasn’t too bad." Blackhawks G Corey Crawford said, "The ice was pretty bad. It was hard. It was bouncing all over the place" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 1/3). The AP's Warren Mayes noted Hockey HOFers Bobby Hull, who played for the Blackhawks, and his son, Brett, who played for the Blues and serves as Exec VP, "dropped the ceremonial first puck." Bobby Hull "wore a Blackhawks jersey and Brett wore the Blues sweater" (AP, 1/2). In St. Louis, Benjamin Hochman writes St. Louis and the Blues "nailed this one" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 1/3).
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More than 40,000 fans turned out to see the
Centennial Classic at BMO Field |
INSTANT CLASSIC: In Toronto, Rob Longley noted the Red Wings-Maple Leafs Centennial Classic on Sunday was an "instant classic led by the most exciting Leafs prospect in decades" in rookie C Auston Matthews. The Leafs beat the Red Wings 5-4 in OT in front of 40,148 fans at BMO Field (TORONTO SUN, 1/2). TSN.ca's Frank Seravalli wrote the game "went about as well as could be scripted." It was "played under ideal conditions." New Year’s Day "brought a bright, sunny day" that made for a "postcard-worthy setting as the sun slipped behind BMO Field’s grandstand and beyond the Lake Ontario shoreline." The game's start was "pushed back 30 minutes by the NHL because of the sun's soupy impact on the ice surface" (TSN.ca, 1/1). THE HOCKEY NEWS' Ken Campbell wrote the Centennial Classic was an "absolute hunk of garbage from a hockey standpoint for the first two periods." The puck was "bouncing around like a pinball" (THEHOCKEYNEWS.com, 1/1).
POLISHED NOVELTIES: NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said that he "expects another three in-the-elements games next season," regardless of whether NHLers participate in the '18 PyeongChang Games. The NATIONAL POST's Scott Stinson wrote outdoor games, even though they "aren’t as novel as they once were, are still a marquee event for a league that has very few of them." But outdoor games, with their "weird stadiums and the weather and the eye black and the hats with pom poms, are a ready-made way for hockey to feel different and special." A tour around the BMO Field grounds on Sunday was "enough to make even an outdoor-game skeptic admit that fans are still very excited about the concept." That is why they "sell tickets to sporting events in the first place" (NATIONAL POST, 1/2). USA TODAY's Kevin Allen writes about "why the outdoor concept still works." Outdoor games have a "Super Bowl feel," while weather is "always a sub-plot." The games are also "bigger than the sport," and "results matter" (USA TODAY, 1/3).
