Note to the NHL: Enough with the Outdoor Games

I hope the ice melts in Los Angeles on Saturday.

There, I said it.

It’s ironic that within a week of the NFL hosting its first outdoor Super Bowl in a cold-weather climate, the National Hockey League is hosting its first game under the stars in a hot-weather climate.  On the one hand, it will be fun and exciting to see what develops in both games.

But on the other, if the ice melts, the NHL will get what’s coming to it.

Hockey’s Winter Classic, pitting two rivals against each other in an outdoor game reminiscent of the pond hockey most professionals grew up playing, has become an appealing New Years Day tradition.  Unfortunately, the league couldn’t leave it at that, especially where there’s money to be made.

So this year, we have the Winter Classic, the Stadium Series, and Canada’s Heritage Classic.  In all, that’s six outdoor games, with all but one coming in January. 

This dilutes the specialness of the idea.  It also begs the question, why is one outdoor game more “classic” than another?

For fans lucky enough to attend, each game is sure to be a treat, particularly in cities that have never hosted the New Years game.  But for vast majority of hockey fans, myself included, it all seems kind of ho-hum, and worse than that, a money grab.  The average ticket price for one of these games is $195.  The majority of seats will provide a view that’s slightly better than watching a rocket launch in a night sky two states away.  The best seats – those that will let you actually see the puck – you know, that important round thing all the players are chasing after – start at about $300.  And even season ticket holders have to pay a premium above their usual seat cost to attend.

But look, we have sharp new uniforms just for the occasion!  And look, we’ve got team alumni skating on the rink the day before the big game!  Wow, we’re watching hockey in Yankee Stadium!  And there, up in the sky, are fighter jets!

I’m all for the pageantry of an outdoor game, especially when my team is involved.  But save it for once a year as in the past.  Make it the mid-season Super Bowl of hockey, with all the attendant hype.  Rotate teams as you do the site of the All-Star Game, so eventually everyone gets a chance.  But when you schedule so many games the fans can’t keep them straight, and you need to manufacture lofty names for them, it’s time to rethink the whole concept, and consider what exactly makes these games special.

I’d say the answer is rarity.