Another Classic

Another classic Winter Classic. Truly amazing. Kudos to the NHL for staging another outstanding outdoor game.



It was truly a great game today. Made all the better by the Red Wings coming back from a 3-1 deficit to win it, 6-4.
I don't know why the Wings got down early. If I had to guess it was because they were visiting team at the Winter Classic and the hometown crowd's enthusiasm carried over to the Blackhawks. Or maybe, as Dan Cleary stated, it was the head wind the the Wings had to battle against. James Mirtle noticed that too.

Very nice goal by Pavel Datsyuk. I don't know about any wind-assistance here, but the majority of the goals were scored with the wind at a team's back.

NBC call:


CBC call:


Pavel Datsyuk's goal was beautiful. It's a shame some hockey writers and bloggers think there's no artistry in hockey.

Reading several articles tonight it seems many think there will be more Winter Classics in the future. Gary Bettman, NHL commissioner, hinted as much.

Wes Goldstein:
In that respect, the NHL got all that it could have hoped in what now seems likely to be an annual event on the league's calendar, shoehorning itself into a day traditionally meant for college football and coming up with an entertaining contest that actually stood on its own merits.

Scott Burnside:
It (the NHL) has hit on a signature event that should continue to draw the casual fan for years to come, regardless of where the game goes.
Bettman predicted that the number of teams interested in hosting an outdoor game would grow and that the insistence with which teams would pursue the event likely will grow, as well.
The league is expected to seize on the successes of the first two Winter Classics to establish a bid process not unlike that which determines hosting the All-Star Game and the entry draft. Teams and cities will have to put together a plan outlining why they deserve to host the game.

The only criticism, and it's very minor, were the announcers who kept saying, "the Cup goes through Detroit." Once is enough. I'm a Red Wings fan, and I got tired of hearing it. I imagine all Blackhawks fans did as well. Other than that, while not great, the broadcast of the game was fine. Some fans have been far more critical of NBC's broadcast than me.