While other indoor sports such as basketball have been able to use outdoor
tennis courts and even
aircraft carriers for outdoor games, this is rarely possible in ice hockey because a regulation rink is generally much wider and longer than the playing surface available in either of those venues. Ice hockey, however, has been played at
Stade Roland Garros, the venue of the
French Open in tennis. Staging a
Vysshaya liga game on the Russian aircraft carrier
Admiral Kuznetsov has been considered as well. To compensate for the varying weather conditions at outdoor ice hockey games, the teams may switch sides after each half of a period.
History
The University of Michigan and Michigan State's game, known as the
Cold War, was first held in 2001 and launched the modern outdoor game phenomenon.
Outdoor games have been held by many leagues around the world. The
Swiss league's
SCL Tigers hosted
SC Bern in an outdoor game to celebrate the 100th Tigers–Bern Derby in 2007.[10] In 2009, Swedish clubs
Frölunda HC and
Färjestads BK played a game at
Ullevi. The game broke the former European league-game record for attendance at that time with a crowd of 31,144 (beaten in February 2011 when
Jokerit and
HIFK played in front of 36,644 spectators).[11] The game also broke the Swedish record crowd of 23,192, set in the same stadium in 1962.[12] The current world record for attendance at a hockey game was set in December 2010, in an
NCAA game between the same two teams that participated in the Cold War. In this game,
Michigan hosted
Michigan State in an event known as
The Big Chill at the Big House. The game had an announced attendance of 113,411 spectators, but Guinness World Records certified the attendance as 104,173 based on tickets scanned.[1][13][14] The record had previously been set at the opening game of the
2010 IIHF World Championship, in which the hosting
Germans defeated the
United States 2–1 before a then-record 77,803 fans. Although the game was held at
Veltins-Arena in
Gelsenkirchen, it was not technically an outdoor game, as the stadium's retractable roof was closed due to
International Ice Hockey Federation regulations.[15][16][17] In 2010, Färjestad and Frölunda again played an outdoor game against each other, this time in
Karlstad. 15,274 spectators saw Färjestad win the game 5–2.[18]
Popularity
Outdoor games have proven to be immensely popular with fans. For the 2003 Heritage Classic, the NHL received over 900,000 requests from all over the world for a chance to buy one of the 57,167 tickets available.
CBC's Hockey Night in Canada telecast of the game drew 2.7 million viewers, a record for a regular season game for the half-century old television program.[19] In the United States, the Winter Classics have been a ratings winner; 4.56 million people watched the 2011 Winter Classic, and the game led to a ratings win for
NBC in the coveted 18–49 age group despite the fact that poor weather forced the NHL to move the start time of the game back several hours on less than a day's notice.[20] It became the most watched NHL regular season game in the last 36 years.[21] The games have been credited as causing increased interest in hockey in the United States.[22] In Russia, the
Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) hosted its first
All-Star Game in 2009 in Moscow's
Red Square. The league used the location to promote the KHL amidst the
global financial crisis.[23]
Games
Though games have been held outdoors since the sport's earliest days, this list contains only those held since the 2001 Cold War popularized the trend of holding outdoor games as events.
^Organizers of the 2011 NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game limited the number of tickets available to far fewer than could be accommodated or were desired, a move that caused controversy.
^The SEL Outdoor Classic was renamed the SHL Outdoor Classic due to the league name change in June 2013.
^
abcThe Rangers were designated as the visiting team for their outdoor games held in New York City as a
legal fiction; their home arena,
Madison Square Garden, receives tax-exempt status, but only if the Rangers do not "cease playing" home games at MSG, generally interpreted as playing any "home" game outside of MSG.
^"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived from the original on January 2, 2014. Retrieved 2014-01-01.{{
cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
link) CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (
link)www.rowanicehockey.com January 2, 2014.
While other indoor sports such as basketball have been able to use outdoor
tennis courts and even
aircraft carriers for outdoor games, this is rarely possible in ice hockey because a regulation rink is generally much wider and longer than the playing surface available in either of those venues. Ice hockey, however, has been played at
Stade Roland Garros, the venue of the
French Open in tennis. Staging a
Vysshaya liga game on the Russian aircraft carrier
Admiral Kuznetsov has been considered as well. To compensate for the varying weather conditions at outdoor ice hockey games, the teams may switch sides after each half of a period.
History
The University of Michigan and Michigan State's game, known as the
Cold War, was first held in 2001 and launched the modern outdoor game phenomenon.
Outdoor games have been held by many leagues around the world. The
Swiss league's
SCL Tigers hosted
SC Bern in an outdoor game to celebrate the 100th Tigers–Bern Derby in 2007.[10] In 2009, Swedish clubs
Frölunda HC and
Färjestads BK played a game at
Ullevi. The game broke the former European league-game record for attendance at that time with a crowd of 31,144 (beaten in February 2011 when
Jokerit and
HIFK played in front of 36,644 spectators).[11] The game also broke the Swedish record crowd of 23,192, set in the same stadium in 1962.[12] The current world record for attendance at a hockey game was set in December 2010, in an
NCAA game between the same two teams that participated in the Cold War. In this game,
Michigan hosted
Michigan State in an event known as
The Big Chill at the Big House. The game had an announced attendance of 113,411 spectators, but Guinness World Records certified the attendance as 104,173 based on tickets scanned.[1][13][14] The record had previously been set at the opening game of the
2010 IIHF World Championship, in which the hosting
Germans defeated the
United States 2–1 before a then-record 77,803 fans. Although the game was held at
Veltins-Arena in
Gelsenkirchen, it was not technically an outdoor game, as the stadium's retractable roof was closed due to
International Ice Hockey Federation regulations.[15][16][17] In 2010, Färjestad and Frölunda again played an outdoor game against each other, this time in
Karlstad. 15,274 spectators saw Färjestad win the game 5–2.[18]
Popularity
Outdoor games have proven to be immensely popular with fans. For the 2003 Heritage Classic, the NHL received over 900,000 requests from all over the world for a chance to buy one of the 57,167 tickets available.
CBC's Hockey Night in Canada telecast of the game drew 2.7 million viewers, a record for a regular season game for the half-century old television program.[19] In the United States, the Winter Classics have been a ratings winner; 4.56 million people watched the 2011 Winter Classic, and the game led to a ratings win for
NBC in the coveted 18–49 age group despite the fact that poor weather forced the NHL to move the start time of the game back several hours on less than a day's notice.[20] It became the most watched NHL regular season game in the last 36 years.[21] The games have been credited as causing increased interest in hockey in the United States.[22] In Russia, the
Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) hosted its first
All-Star Game in 2009 in Moscow's
Red Square. The league used the location to promote the KHL amidst the
global financial crisis.[23]
Games
Though games have been held outdoors since the sport's earliest days, this list contains only those held since the 2001 Cold War popularized the trend of holding outdoor games as events.
^Organizers of the 2011 NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game limited the number of tickets available to far fewer than could be accommodated or were desired, a move that caused controversy.
^The SEL Outdoor Classic was renamed the SHL Outdoor Classic due to the league name change in June 2013.
^
abcThe Rangers were designated as the visiting team for their outdoor games held in New York City as a
legal fiction; their home arena,
Madison Square Garden, receives tax-exempt status, but only if the Rangers do not "cease playing" home games at MSG, generally interpreted as playing any "home" game outside of MSG.
^"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived from the original on January 2, 2014. Retrieved 2014-01-01.{{
cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
link) CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (
link)www.rowanicehockey.com January 2, 2014.