[We interrupt your Columbus Blue Jackets playoff chase for this message.]
Word is leaking out that the NHL, flush with excitement (and, I presume, cash) over their successful series of annual New Year’s Day Winter Classic games, is expanding from their current scheduling model – an annual Winter Classic in the United States, combined with a periodic Heritage Classic in Canada – to six outdoor games in 2013-14. If you check out the link above, you’ll see the following outdoor schedule:
January 1, 2014 – Winter Classic – Detroit v. Toronto in Ann Arbor, Michigan (University of Michigan)
January 25, 2014 – Los Angeles v. Anaheim in Los Angeles, California (Dodger Stadium)
January 26, 2014 – New York Rangers v. New York Islanders in New York, New York (Yankee Stadium)
January 29, 2014 – New York Rangers v. New Jersey Devils in New York, New York (Yankee Stadium)
March 1, 2014 – Chicago Blackhawks v. Pittsburgh Penguins in Chicago, Illinois (Soldier Field)
March 2, 2014 – Heritage Classic – Vancouver Canucks v. Ottawa Senators in Vancouver, British Columbia (B. C. Place Stadium)
Wow. That’s a lot of outdoor hockey! What do you think of that, Oprah?
Image from @HockeyMemes
Amazingly, and despite the threefold expansion of outdoor NHL hockey, frustration abounds. Point is, there’s frustration over the uneven allocation of outdoor hockey. Some say there’s too much – that a single Winter Classic makes the whole notion of an outdoor game novel and unique, and that all these additional games water down the product. Others suggest that these outdoor games are simply bad hockey – that NHL hockey should be played in the controlled environment of an NHL arena. Then, you have those who feel aggrieved because their team isn’t hosting one of the six games. (Even Blue Jackets fans are expressing frustration that they can’t get an outdoor game at the Ohio State University’s football stadium, but that’s another story for another day.)
Considering all of the angst, permit me to offer a proposal to address the challenges of outdoor NHL hockey.
First, a reality check: Outdoor NHL hockey isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. These games are licenses for teams and the league to print money. I’m not a big fan of freezing my rear off for hours on end in an outdoor stadium, but apparently a lot of you hockey nuts are. I mean, a LOT of you. Only two NHL arenas hold more than 20,000 seats, but the five Winter Classics have drawn between 38,000 and 71,000 fans. The tickets are sold at a premium. The special merchandise sales are out of sight. Is that the sound of cash registers that you hear? Point being, the arguments against outdoor hockey on the merits are going to fall on deaf ears.
That said, let’s look forward. Here’s the core of my proposal:
Presuming they meet the league’s requirements for hosting an outdoor game, every NHL team should be permitted to hold one home game outdoors every season.
That’s a tall order, granted, but maybe Oprah was onto something. Here’s how I suggest we get there.
1. The NHL should create some standards. Every NHL game has to meet a certain threshold of quality. Elements to be considered should include: 1) Size of facility, 2) Appropriateness of facilities (locker rooms, press box, etc.), 3) Ability to generate and maintain NHL-quality ice, 4) Scientific proof of ability to hold a game outdoors and 5) Community engagement and support – including an agreement with the host facility. Other considerations should be included as needed.
2. Teams should be required to submit outdoor game plans to the league for approval. The above standards should be satisfied, and teams should also propose dates for outdoor games and opponents. (No single NHL team should be required to play more than three outdoor games per season, protecting the likes of the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Original Six from playing half their games outside.) If they meet the requirements, they get an outdoor game on the schedule.
3. The NHL will have the flexibility to schedule the games and choose which games will receive special designations – Winter Classic, Heritage Classic, Hockey Day in America, Hockey Day in Canada. Special designation games will get the full weight of the NHL marketing machine. Teams without the special designations will be left to the normal treatment of their home television and radio packages, with the possibility of getting picked up by national networks at their discretion.
This could be a tall order for the likes of the Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning or the Phoenix Coyotes, whose climates don’t automatically scream “pond hockey.” But who are we to say they can’t do it? If they can find a way to pull off an outdoor game, more power to them. Heck, the NHL is confident that they can get an outdoor game played in Los Angeles. They’ve already played an exhibition game in Las Vegas!
Then there’s the matter of facilities and community support. Not every NHL community is lucky enough to have a giant football stadium or historically significant baseball park in which to stage a game. Many are, though. Why not let them have the opportunity?
Same goes for ticket sales. I’ll presume that the time and effort involved in a one-off event like this would be huge, and ticket sales would need to justify the effort. If the hosting team can’t fill the place, the NHL should have the right to deny an application.
In the end, though, it’s all about fairness and maintaining an NHL standard of event quality. Teams have 41 home games a season, so peeling one off for a special outdoor game shouldn’t be a problem. The key is, don’t let outdoor games turn into gimmicks. Make them events.
And to those NHL teams who can pull off these events without sacrificing a genuine NHL game experience, go get ‘em.
[We return you to the Columbus Blue Jackets playoff chase. Enjoy the rest of your season.]
