Penguins Reportedly Planning Outdoor Game At Heinz Field

So now we wait to see if this game gets Winter Classic or Stadium Series honors. The Blues also declined comment.

Again, nothing is official yet, but Rutherford expects that the official Winter Classic announcement could come within the next week.

The Blues being selected as the host for the 2017 Winter Classic would make a lot of sense for the organization. The game would be a part of festivities celebrating the Blues 50th anniversary.

Would it be painful for 40K Hawks fans to invade Busch Stadium? Yes. There has been a push for several years now to have the two teams play an outdoor game at Beaver Stadium in State College, but that does not seem to be something that is in the cards at this point. The Los Angeles Kings, another 1967 expansion team, were announced as the host of the 2017 NHL All-Star game last weekend.

The Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins, two others, are also expected to play in an outdoor game in 2017, ESPN.com recently reported.

If the Blackhawks and Blues end up battling outdoors, whether in the Winter Classic itself or a Stadium Series game, it will mark the Blues’ first outdoor game and the fifth time that the Blackhawks have played outdoors.

Apparently the Cardinals are preparing to host a game on January 2nd, which signals Winter Classic over Stadium Series.

Unfortunately, the event is probably going to hamper the Toronto Maple Leafs 100th anniversary celebrations. But because Toronto’s sports schedule is already packed for next year with the World Cup of Hockey, the World Junior Championship and the CFL’s Grey Cup all taking place in the city the NHL might not want to add the Winter Classic on top of that.