Outdoor Classic 2008: Penguins-Sabres

[Shoalzie]

How could you not watch this today? It was gutsy to put this game up against bowl games on New Year's Day but Wilson Stadium looked jam packed and it looked like the fans had a great time. The stoppages to fix the ice got annoying but the game was quite entertaining. Seeing the old Sabres gear was pretty cool. The Pens uniforms were weird...I'm too used to the black and gold I guess.

Thoughts?

[MuchoBulls]

I'm becoming more of a fan of the outdoor after watching it yesterday. It certainly brings back the memories of playing pond hockey when I was young and I am sure the players got the same feeling.

The stoppages were certainly necessary, especially with the snow and a couple of rough patches of ice.

I'd like to see them do that in Minnesota, but I am not sure that they have the outdoor venue as of yet.

I am sure Detroit or New York would be capable of filling a outdoor stadium for a game.

[Cross Traffic]

NEW YORK (AP) -- More people tuned in on New Year's Day to see the NHL play outdoors than any other regular-season game in more than a decade.

The Penguins-Sabres game in snowy Buffalo -- the first regular-season outdoor NHL game in the United States -- drew a 2.6 overnight rating and a 5 share on NBC. Those were the best numbers since a six-game regional telecast on Fox drew a 3.0 overnight rating and a 7 share on Feb. 3, 1996.

Pittsburgh won 2-1 in a shootout on a Sidney Crosby's score before a crowd of more than 71,000 at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

The big numbers, in the stands and on TV, came three years after the NHL lockout forced the cancellation of an entire season and after last season's Stanley Cup finals on NBC drew record-low ratings.

"We're delighted by the success of this historic event," NBC Sports president Ken Schanzer said. "The Winter Classic exposed hockey to a larger audience and definitely made new fans of the game."

The Winter Classic ratings also surpassed Wayne Gretzky's final game, which was broadcast on Fox on April 18, 1999, and drew a 2.5/6.

The Buffalo and Pittsburgh markets led the ratings, at 38.2/58 and 17.7/30, respectively. But markets such as Sacramento, Calif., St. Louis and Denver also drew strong ratings, even though the game went up against a number of college football bowl games, including an intriguing Capital One Bowl between Florida and Michigan.

"This was one of the best events I've ever been a part of as a player, coach or broadcaster," NBC game analyst Eddie Olczyk said. "It truly was a memorable experience and a great day for the sport of hockey."

Overnight ratings measure the 55 largest TV markets in the United States, and each ratings point represents about 735,000 households. The rating is the percentage watching a telecast among homes with televisions, and the share is the percentage tuned into a broadcast among those households with televisions on at the time.

Wow, and I thought that showing the game on New Year's Day was a horrible idea. Chicago could also support an event like this, especially if it was a Hawks/Wings or Hawks/Blues game.

[Shoalzie]

This is probably the best press and attention the league has gotten in a while. The game in Edmonton was a nice event for the league but to have one in the States was a great idea as well. I'd love for this to be a new tradition. You can't exactly play these types of games everywhere but it just shows what type of passion there is for the game in the northeast. Buffalo is a great hockey market...bravo to them!

[Adelpiero]

what a shocker, the top 10 cities for viewing, and Detoilet not in there.

hockey city my ass, they cant even sell the joe out.


as expected, st.louis in top 10 for viewers. solid hockey town.

[Shoalzie]

what a shocker, the top 10 cities for viewing, and Detoilet not in there.

hockey city my ass, they cant even sell the joe out.


as expected, st.louis in top 10 for viewers. solid hockey town.

To be fair, the Capital One Bowl was on at the same time and there are plenty of Michigan football fans in Detroit that would rather watch Lloyd Carr's final game than a hockey game between the Penguins and Sabres. I'm not in Detroit persay...I can vouch that I had my TV on NBC at least 80% of the time in the 1-4:30 timeslot while the two games were on.

I do think Detroit is taking the Red Wings for granted right now. This team is on a record pace for wins...most wins in franchise history after 41 games...and the fans would rather go to Lions games. Detroit is a loyal sports town but the fans show loyalty to the wrong team. The Joe should be packed every night. If the Pistons can keep selling out, why can't the Wings?