17 years ago the NHL made history
The NHL made history on this date, 17 years ago. On November 22nd, 2003, the Edmonton Oilers and Montreal Canadiens stepped outside for the first outdoor regular season game in NHL history, called the Heritage Classic. The game was played at the Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, Alberta. For the most part, the game was successful for the NHL, the only issue was the cold weather, which should have been expected. The temperature reached -18 Celsius (-0.4 Fahrenheit), while the wind-chill was -30 Celsius (-22 Fahrenheit). Canadiens goaltender Jose Theodore famously wore a tuque on his helmet due to the extreme cold.
The game ended in a 4-3 victory for the visiting Montreal Canadiens. Richard Zednik and Yanic Perreault scored twice for Montreal, while Eric Brewer, Jarret Stoll, and Steve Staios scored for Edmonton. Zednik (3rd), Staios (2nd), and Perreault (1st) were named the three stars for the game.
The game was held to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Edmonton Oilers joining the NHL, and the 20th anniversary of their first Stanley Cup win.
The 2003 Heritage Classic had an attendance of 57, 167, the NHL record at the time, and was held until 2008, when the NHL returned outdoors for the first Winter Classic. The 2008 Winter Classic between the Buffalo Sabres, and Pittsburgh Penguins drew 71, 217 fans.
The broadcast of the game was the first on CBC to be shown in HD, and it drew 2.747 million viewers across Canada.
THIS DATE IN 2003: The @NHL hosted a regular-season outdoor game for the first time when 57,167 fans gathered at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton to see the @CanadiensMTL edge the @EdmontonOilers 4-3 in the Heritage Classic. #NHLStats
More TDIH: https://t.co/bBBgaAcvvm pic.twitter.com/5bdpxlYTXl— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) November 22, 2019
Since the 2003 Heritage Classic, the NHL has held 29 additional outdoor games, with two more scheduled for the next couple of seasons. 4 Heritage Classics, 1 NHL100 Classic, 11 Stadium Series', and 12 Winter Classics have been held since 2003.
The Chicago Blackhawks lead the NHL in outdoor game appearances with six. They've hosted three, and been on the road for three. Outdoor games haven't been too kind to the Blackhawks, as they have a record of one win, and five losses.
In 2014, the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs played in the Winter Classic on New Year's Day, and set the NHL's attendance record with 105, 491 fans at Michigan Stadium aka "The Big House" in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
As mentioned, the NHL has two more outdoor games scheduled for upcoming seasons. The 2021 NHL Winter Classic was set to be played on New Year's Day at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota between the Minnesota Wild, and St. Louis Blues, but due to COVID-19, and the unknown start date for the 2020-21 season, the league moved that game to New Year's Day in 2022. The other game scheduled is the 2021 Stadium Series, which most likely will get postponed to 2022. The game is going to feature the Carolina Hurricanes against an opponent TBD, at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The trend of outdoor games is massive for the NHL in terms of getting fans interested in the game, as well as gaining significant revenue. These outdoor games are likely going to continue for many years, even decades to come.
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YESTERDAY
JUNE 6, 2026
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| G | A | PTS | ||
| Mitch Marner | 3 | 1 | 4 | |
| Tomas Hertl | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jordan Staal | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Shea Theodore | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Sebastian Aho | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Brayden McNabb | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Taylor Hall | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jordan Martinook | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Andrei Svechnikov | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jackson Blake | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jack Eichel | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Brett Howden | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Seth Jarvis | - | 1 | 1 | |
| William Karlsson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Eric Robinson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jaccob Slavin | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Logan Stankoven | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Frederik Andersen | - | - | - | |
| Rasmus Andersson | - | - | - | |
| Ivan Barbashev | - | - | - | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||