JACKSONVILLE, Fla – The NHL will soon hold their 6th Winter Classic game, this time in Philadelphia when the Flyers take on the New York Rangers. The Rangers will be making their first appearance in the Classic while the Flyers will be making their second. In the five previous Winter Classics, eight different teams have made appearances, with two (Philadelphia and Pittsburgh) appearing more than once. The simple fact is, however, there may not any new members to the dance for a while.
The fact is, it is all about ratings. The NHL wants, and deserves, good ratings for this premiere showcase. To assure that, you need marketable teams for your showcase event.
Besides the previously mentioned Flyers, Rangers and Penguins, the Classic has also seen appearances by Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Boston and Washington.
Now consider for one second, what is the likelihood that any of the NHL teams others than those will appear in the Classic. Not very. I don’t mean this to be a slap at any of the other teams in the league or their fans but it is hard to see teams like Carolina, Tampa Bay or even a Los Angeles in the finals. If they were still among the elite in the league, maybe Colorado but I really don’t think fans outside of the hardcore center cares very much about them right now.
Nope, it comes down to ratings. NBC needs to have guaranteed ratings draws in the game. The Flyers, the Rangers, the Penguins, the Capitals (etc). Bring that. The Wild, the Stars, the Predators just don’t bring that. Heck, you might have even noticed that I left the Islanders out of this conversation. However, the Isles just don’t bring the cache to the party that the Rangers do, when it comes to ratings that is.
You might also have noticed I haven’t mentioned a single Canadian club yet. Good reason for that. While having a team like the Ducks or Panthers in the game would, these days, likely bring poor ratings, having a Canadian team in the classic would be much worse. The hardcore hockey fan would love to see a Winter Classic between Toronto and Detroit or Montreal and Boston. The casual fan in the states (who the NHL and NBC needs to make this a ratings winner) doesn’t really care if these teams have won multiple Stanley Cup titles. The novelty of an outdoor game will wear off eventually. The teams in the Classic won’t. Canadian teams won’t make a dent in the US television market, US teams will.
Do I hope I am wrong. Yes, I really do. I hope when they announce the 2013 Winter Classic, we find it to be Toronto at Detroit or Montreal or New York Rangers or even Vancouver at Washington. I would love to see that last match-up. The Sedin Brothers against Alex Ovechkin would be wonderful to see.
Maybe someday we will see a Winter Classic game played in a non-northern city. A St. Louis, a Tampa Bay, maybe even a San Jose or Los Angeles. Hopefully even we will get an outdoor game back in Canada for 2013. Winnipeg vs. Calgary or Vancouver against Edmonton would be great additions. Until then, we know what we have for the Winter Classic and that isn’t going to change much.
Contact Kenneth.Holdren@prohockeynews.com
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