SEATTLE, WA – Nearly a year ago at the Winter Classic in Boston, hockey fans awaited with great anxiousness the announcement of which city would be hosting the 2024 Winter Classic. As one of the game’s tentpole events since it’s inaugural step-out in Buffalo on New Year’s Day in 2008, the game has grown to become a regular part of the professional circuit and continues to grow in enormous popularity.
Which US city would it be, a traditional, Original Six city like Chicago, Detroit, New York or Boston?
There was a good chance it would be Boston, as the Bruins have hosted three Winter Classic games, in 2010 at Fenway Park against the Philadelphia Flyers, in 2016 at Gilette Stadium in nearby Foxborough, MA against the Montreal Canadiens and in 2023 at Fenway Park against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Bruins also appeared as one of the four teams in 2021 at Lake Tahoe where they defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 7-3.
Would it be Chicago where the Blackhawks hosted their first Winter Classic when they played the Detroit Red Wings at Wrigley Field and the 2019 event at Notre Dame in South Bend, IN where they played the Boston Bruins. To go with these host appearances, they have appeared in two other Winter Classic games, losing all four of them. The Blackhawks also hosted two other outdoor games, the 2014 Stadium Series games when they defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-1 at Soldier Field and in one of the 2016 Stadium Series games when they travelled to Minnesota to face the Wild at TCF Stadium in Minneapolis, losing 6-1.
How about Detroit, where the Red Wings have played in two winter classic, winning visitors by a score of 6-4 over the Blackhawks at Wrigley Field in 2009 and losers in the 2014 tilt against the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-2 in a shootout at the Big House in Ann Arbor, MI in what was played under blizzard conditions when 105,491 gathered for what is the largest attendance in a single NHL game. The winged-wheel has participated in two other outdoor games, one of the 2016 Stadium Series games in Denver at Coors Field where they defeated the Colorado Avalanche 5-3 and the 2017 Centennial Classic in Toronto where they lost again to the Maple Leafs in overtime 5-4 at BMO Field.
Maybe the New York would be a good choice, despite the Rangers being technically designated as the visiting team for all games held in New York City not being played at Madison Square Garden. This technicality is to comply with a property tax exemption.
Still, the oldest New York NHL Franchise, was still viewed as being the “host” when the Rangers played the Buffalo Sabres in 2018 at Citi Field, winning 3-2 in overtime. The Rangers also played in the 2012 Winter Classic and faced the Philadelphia Flyers at Citizens Bank Park, winning 3-2. New York also participated in two Stadium Series events at Yankee Stadium in 2014, defeating the Devils 7-3 before dispatching the Islanders 2-1 three days later.
Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Washington have also been good draws, as much for the make-up of their teams as well as the way the cities have hosted events like the Winter Classic.
Despite all this history, the NHL decided to go non-traditional. It would be Seattle where the host Kraken would host the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Park, home of Major League Baseball’s Seattle Mariners.
Of note, the defending Stanley Cup Champions had not yet earned the most difficult title in all of sports. In just their sixth season, they had a record of 25-12-1 at the time of the announcement. The Seattle Kraken, in just their second season, were on their way to their first playoff berth, sporting a 19-12-4 at the time of the awarding of the mid-season event. Little did they know at the time that just more than three months later, they would knock off the defending Stanley Cup champions-Colorado Avalanche in seven games before falling to the Dallas Stars in an equal amount of contests.
So just what drove the decision to name Seattle as host of the 15th Winter Classic? It’s simple; reward the two newest franchises for the results they have generated in growing the game in two relatively, non-traditional markets. It is the rising of a sports profile in a crowded entertainment landscape which has put Vegas and Seattle front and center in this process.
That Vegas won a Stanley Cup in year five and that Seattle earned not just their first play-off berth, but a victory in the first round over 2022 Stanley Cup Champions Colorado and it just adds in validating what a great choice it is for the Golden Knights to travel to face the Kraken in this high-profile event.
Another neat addition to the event is the venue, not just a baseball venue, but one with a retractable roof, something no other event in this channel has enjoyed. The value of this unique element is in the ability for the rink, stage, and ice surface to be constructed under controlled conditions. The only other similar occurrence took place in 2014 when Vancouver hosted the Heritage Classic at B.C. Place.
Snow fell the day before the event, which, had that continued, would have been well-received. However, temperatures rose as gameday approached and the largest cable-operated roof had to be closed as steady rain fell, making it a large venue event and covered, taking just a bit away from the outdoor value of the experience. I was there and while fun, was less than it should have been, thanks to mother nature.
Leading up to the event, nearly a year in the making since the announcement, is the unveiling of the primary game logo, the team logos and uniforms, the field staging design and the events leading up to the big game. I will examine these elements in the next week to ten days as the 2024 Winter Classic from Seattle nears its arrival in the Emerald city.
Dennis Morrell has developed a deeply rooted passion for our game over many decades as a goaltender, writer, photographer, goalie coach, and active Level 3 USA Hockey-certified, on-ice official with over 2,000 games with the whistle. His passion for the game began in the early 70s upon his first glance at players battling for the puck at Clayton’s Shaw Park.
He has been fortunate to journalistically cover 2 NHL Entry Drafts, 5 NHL All-Star Games, 8 NHL Outdoor Games in two countries and 21 games played in the context of 9 Stanley Cup Final games, witnessing the oldest trophy in sports lifted 3 times, including when his beloved team, the St. Louis Blues, won their first chalice in 2019.
He has witnessed over 1,000 major and minor professional games in over 250 different arenas. He can be reached at dennis.morrell@prohockeynews.com and you can follow him on Twitter at DMMORRELL.
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