NHL Winter Classic 2008

NHL Winter Classic 2008. I was there! And it was awesome!
(Update: My pictures are now available here)

January 1, 2008. Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Buffalo Sabres. Hockey, played outdoors in the Buffalo Bills football stadium.

Even though the Sabres lost, and it was SO cold and snowy outside, it was totally worth it. For the first part of the game, when it was cold enough that the snow would brush off of you, I did not feel as cold as expected. It must have warmed up just enough to get the kind of snow that melts as soon as it hits your clothing. That's when everything get wet and that's when you start feeling really cold. I don't think I was ever shivering, though. Too much excitement, I suppose.

They showed a few crazies on the jumbo-tron that had their shirts off for the game. I was just fine in my 2 layers of pants, 3 layers of underwear, 2 layers of socks (including those really warm socks made for hunting/hiking), 3 layers of shirts, leather fuzzy coat, fleece hat and scarf, and 2 layers of gloves. But still, the metal bleachers felt cold even after putting down an extra scarf and an extra pair of pants onto the bench before sitting. I also made great use of the souvenir t-shirts we bought by using them as a butt cushion!

It is amazing how small a hockey rink looks when it's sitting in the middle of a football field. It was weird not seeing any people seated right next to the glass at all. It was also weird seeing it snow during a hockey game, and the Zamboni going on the rink more often than just in between periods. Then, when the Zamboni was done on the rink it would shuttle off to the side of the football field and deposit a pile of snow like a little dump truck.

Watching the news the night before, when they talked about setting everything up for the game, they mentioned trucking in snow to fill in from the edge of the rink to the edge of the football field itself. Never would have thought you'd hear anyone in Buffalo talking about trucking snow IN anywhere! :)

It was definitely a unique experience and I'm so glad I got to go! Much thanks to Jeff's cousin Josh who got us a block of tickets even though the game sold out so quickly after they went on sale (I've heard different stories about the game selling out anywhere between 15 - 60 minutes after tix went on sale. Regardless, it sold out very quickly!)

And it was a great game: tied at the end of regulation, tied at the end of overtime, and decided by the 6th shooter in the shootout. What a game! I took lots of pictures (coming soon). It's a New Year's Day I'll never forget!