The first outdoor NHL exhibition game was on September 28, 1991 when the Los Angeles Kings played the New York Rangers outside, if you can believe it, Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas strip of all places.
The game drew a crowd of 13,000 people, most of whom were dressed in shorts and t-shirts as the temperature was around 85 degrees.
Wayne Gretzky who scored a goal in the Kings 5-2 win stated, "We were a little bit in awe and I'm sure the Rangers were too. We kept looking at each other and couldn't believe we were playing in 80-degree weather. But it was real nice."
Nobody knew then, but 17 seasons later in 2008 the NHL's Winter Classic would be born.
Begin Slideshow
...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Daniel Sallows
NHL’s Winter Classic: With Historic Games Comes Classic Pictures and Comments
December 22nd, 2009 by Daniel Sallows Leave a reply »
Advertisement