After the wild success of this year's Winter Classic, the NHL immediately began searching for next year's Winter Classic site. 4 out of the 5 Classics have been in the Eastern Conference, for obvious reasons. Hockey is meant to be played on the East Coast and that's where the ratings are going to be the highest. This year's matchup between the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers was absolutely perfect, with both cities' hockey interest at it's highest point since the 1990s. With the NHL looking to go out West, we've got to find a good balance between rivalry and location. Here are the top five possible locations and teams for next year's NHL Super Bowl.
1. Colorado Avalanche At The Detroit Red Wings in The Big House(Michigan Stadium)
This is an absolute no brainer for the league, at least for the Red Wings. There have been rumblings that Detroit will be the host, but for some reason the NHL wants it in Comerica Park. I understand that the Tigers' stadium is right in downtown Detroit, but the possibilities are endless if they play in the Big House. First of all, the tickets sales would shatter NHL records with the building's capacity being an astounding 109,000. You're talking about an raucous environment that could never be recreated. Second of all, the Big House hosted the extremely successful Big Chill game last year between the University of Michigan and Michigan State. With that being said, this event should run even more flawlessly with the NHL running the show instead of the CCHA. The NHL needs to realize that outdoor hockey games are meant to played in football stadiums, not awkwardly placed into baseball stadiums. The Big House has more history than Comerica, and they won't have to worry about conflicting with college football because Michigan's regular season will be long over.
The matchup is pretty much a crap shoot, but I like the youth that they have in Colorado and it would be a nice recreation of the great 90s rival between the two teams. I also could see San Jose or St. Louis come in for the game, but I'm not sure how much television interest they would generate out on the west coast or down in Missouri.
2. Chicago Blackhawks at The Minnesota Wild in TCF Bank Stadium(Minnesota Gophers Stadium)
Pond hockey in Minnesota with 50,000 people watching? An everyday occurrence. Put two NHL teams together outside and you're going to get absolute pandemonium. Minnesota has become an especially great spot for the Classic thanks to the re-energized Wild squad that sits in the sixth spot in the West. The new Gopher stadium is only 3 years old and still remains state-of-the-art. The conditions for a hockey game in January might be scary cold, but that won't deter those crazy Minnesotans from turning the Winter Classic into a big party. Also expect some snow, which is terrible for the ice, but amazing for ratings(think back to the first Winter Wonderland in Buffalo.) The other location for Minnesota could potentially be Target Field(Twins Stadium), but once again, is an awkward baseball stadium with about 10,000 less seats.
The Blackhawks certainly deserve another shot in the Winter Classic, they've got American hero Patty Kane and are consistently a Western Conference contender. Detroit would be the only other opponent that would have any relevance. I'm not exactly sure if Minnesota is going to get any love from the NHL, but they beyond deserve it with the amount of hockey interest there is there.
3.Detroit Red Wings at Colorado Avalance at Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium
Outdoor hockey played a mile above sea-level? Sign me up. Denver is a fantastic city to host a major sport event like this and they've got a great young team to attract a ton of attention. Attendance would be phenomenal because not only does Mile High Stadium hold 75,000+ but there are plenty of people that own second homes out around Colorado thanks to the great skiing out there. I'm not sure what the altitude would do to the outdoor ice, but I can guarantee the NHL would have some way to battle it. The snow element is also there, which is vital to the league's selection process.
4. Detroit Red Wings at The St. Louis Blues at Busch Stadium(St. Louis Cardinals)
This one is a bit outside the box, but the Blues have made a nice return to competitive nature with 3 straight seasons of 87 points or more, including a playoff berth in '09. You might also be saying that St. Louis isn't cold enough in the winter time, but it isn't as far south as people think. The Rams don't play outside, so the Blues would have to settle for Busch Stadium, but the history involved with the Cardinals home base is too great to deny. I'm pretty sure the NHL won't bring the Classic to St. Louis, but I think they'll regret overlooking Missouri's biggest city. Plus, what's better than the beer capital of American combined with an outdoor NHL game?
With a not-so-popular team like the St. Louis Blues, the league would obviously have to bring in the ratings boosting franchise that is the Detroit Red Wings. Remember some of the great playoff series between these two squads in the 90s? I'm looking at you Steve Yzerman. Don't sleep on St. Louis, but I'm sure the NHL will.
5.Boston Bruins at New Jersey Devils in the Meadowlands(MetLife Stadium)
New York needs to host a Winter Classic soon, they have too. But the Rangers simply couldn't play back-to-back years and the Islanders suck. So why not bring in Boston, whose popularity is sky high right now with the Bruins defending as Stanley Cup Champions. I realize the matchup isn't perfect, but you're still going to have a lot of viewers thanks to Boston. I'm not sure how many fans the New Jersey Devils have, because New Jersey's fan loyalty is split between Philly and New York. The Meadowlands or MetLife Stadium as it is officially called, is completely new and its amenities are limitless. Even though it would be the Devils and not the beloved Rangers, I don't think the New York ratings would take much of a hit. Most importantly the parking lot will still be raging as New Yorkers will simply take this as a great opportunity to get obliterated.
The Devils and Bruins are both good teams with storied histories and would provide some good old school, low scoring, hard hitting hockey for our casual NHL fans.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Possible Locations For 2013 Winter Classic
Posted on 6:04 PM by Unknown
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