Most of us learn at an early age that too much of a good thing is not a good thing.
When we are young, we wish we could have our birthday or Christmas every day instead of once a year. As we get older, we realize that one of the things that makes these events so special is that they only happen once a year.
When it comes to the NHL, the league hit on something big on New Year's Day in 2008 when the first Winter Classic was played. The NHL had not been known for its marketing genius, but sensed a void in the sports schedule to use to its advantage.
New Year's Day used to belong to college football, but as that sport kept adding bowl games and spreading them out in December and January, it abdicated its hold on Jan. 1 events.
The NHL stepped into the gap with the Winter Classic, a romantic hockey idea if ever there was one. By pitting two teams in an outdoor game at a baseball or football stadium, a huge throng could attend the game in a unique outdoor environment.
The first official Winter Classic pitted the Pittsburgh Penguins against the Buffalo Sabres at Ralph Wilson Stadium, the home of the Buffa ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Steve Silverman
NHL Ruining Winter Classic Tradition with Overdose of Outdoor Games in 2013-14
August 9th, 2013 by Steve Silverman Leave a reply »
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