The National Hockey League recently awarded the 2015 Winter Classic, the one that's played outdoors on New Year's Day, to Washington, D.C.
This season's game (held over from last year's lockout) will be at the University of Michigan, when the Detroit Red Wings will host the Toronto Maple Leafs. There will be other outdoor games taking place this season at New York's Yankee Stadium, Chicago's Soldier Field, Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, and B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver.
The Minnesota Wild have been trying for years to host the Winter Classic, but they keep getting passed over. They have the venues--Target Field and TCF Bank Stadium at the University of Minnesota have been mentioned. They certainly have the weather (it gets cold in January, you know). So what more do they need? Well, there's a few important factors:
History The Maple Leafs and Red Wings are two of the Original Six franchises that have been in the NHL since the early days of the league nearly a century ago. The Wild have only been in business since 2000. Minnesota's previous NHL franchise, the North Stars, would have had a better shot at the Winter Classic had they not left for Dallas two decades ago.
Competitiveness Teams like the Red Wings and Washington Capitals have become consistent regulars in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Wild made their first appearance in a few years last spring, dropping four out of five to the eventual champion Chicago Blackhawks in the first round. This year is going to be a lot harder for the Wild to get into the playoffs, as realignment puts them in a tougher division (Blackhawks, St. Louis, Dallas, Nashville, Colorado and Winnipeg) than their previous one. Having a leaky defense and low scoring doesn't help.
Marquee Players The Wild broke the bank last year in signing free agents Zach Parise and Ryan Suter to long-term deals, but they have yet to reach the pantheon of NHL players people would pay good money to see. The Capitals have Alexander Ovechkin. The Pittsburgh Penguins have Sidney Crosby. Enough said.
Marketability How many times have the Wild been on national TV? On NBC, that is. Not the NBC Sports Network. Hint: not as much as the Red Wings or Blackhawks. How many times have the Wild appeared on "Hockey Night In Canada"? Another hint: not as much as Montreal or Toronto. Or even the Winnipeg Jets. What we're saying is that you have to be consistent winners and have big-name players to interest network executives on both sides of the border (or maybe even Don Cherry) before you get to play outdoors.
For now though, the Wild and their fans will just snuggle up inside the Xcel Energy Center and build their resume. And hope for 2016.
P.S. We should mention that the University of Minnesota will be hosting an outdoor hockey game at TCF Bank Stadium in January, as the Gophers take on Ohio State in the Hockey City Classic.
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Amid the ruins of last year's lockout, the NHL has had an extreme makeover. There are now four divisions instead of six: Atlantic, Central, Metropolitan and Pacific. New owners are in place in Phoenix, New Jersey and Florida. And there will be a full season, with a one-month break for the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Which means that the Stanley Cup champion will once again be crowned after the summer solstice.
Here's who we think will make the playoffs in these new divisions:
Central: Chicago Blackhawks, St. Louis Blues, Dallas Stars, Nashville Predators.
Pacific: Los Angeles Kings, Phoenix Coyotes, San Jose Sharks, Anaheim Ducks.
Metropolitan: Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals, Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers.
Atlantic: Boston Briuns, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, Detroit Red Wings.
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