NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced, formally, the league's plans for the 2011 Winter Classic(s) during his state of the union address before the Stanley Cup Finals begin.
It will be between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals, and will be held at Heinz Field, home of the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers.
The announcement, which even Bettman joked was one of the league's worst kept secrets, continued to raise eyebrows from the assembled media in Chicago.
And it should.
This coming January's Winter Classic will be the fourth installment of the event which is quickly becoming one of the more popular marketing ideas the league has had in recent memory.
After the first Classic was held on a football field in Buffalo, the league put the event in two of Major League Baseball's great venues: Chicago's Wrigley Field and Boston's Fenway Park.
All three of the previous events have been a wonderful success. However, the league is running an enormous risk both in 2011 and in the coming seasons that follow.
Bettman, after announcing that the game would be in Pittsburgh, then indicated that Washington wa ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by TAB BAMFORD
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