More talk of a 2012 Winter Classic in Philadelphia or State College
by Travis Hughes on Feb 22, 2011 3:33 PM EST
in Philadelphia Flyers Rumors
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From Elliotte Friedman at CBC:
Philadelphia has a shot at next year's Winter Classic, either at Lincoln Financial Field (home of the Eagles) or Beaver Stadium (home of Joe Paterno and Penn State football). Canadian version: Montreal really wants it, and will get it at some point. Appears only other possibility is Vancouver, and it would be interesting to involve BC Place's new retractable roof.
By the way, if you're not reading his weekly "30 thoughts" column, you're missing out. We heard this sort of scuttlebutt back in January after the 2011 Winter Classic was held in Pittsburgh. Pierre LeBrun of ESPN reported then that Lincoln Financial Field was the front-runner.
Gary Bettman and the league continue to say that there are no plans in the works on the Winter Classic or the Heritage Classic next year. Still, who believes that? It's the NHL's marquee event and they'd be a horrible organization if they weren't already thinking about the outdoor games for next season. Believe it or not, the NHL isn't a horrible organization.
So, let's talk about the possibility since it has been reported twice now. Friedman throws the Beaver Stadium possibility back into the mix, but honestly, I'd only accept a game out in State College if the Flyers were playing the Penguins. I don't want to see that venue wasted on a game between the Flyers and the Rangers or something like that. Then again, I wouldn't be shocked if the NHL put the Penguins in the game two years in a row.
Still, Lincoln Financial Field seems like a better bet right now. I could see the Flyers hosting a team like the Rangers, who haven't participated in an outdoor game yet, at the Linc -- and that would be fantastic.
I do think that other teams are deserving of the game before the Flyers get another one. And there are certainly more teams that should get one before the Penguins get a third outdoor game. That's not to say I wouldn't be excited if the Flyers were involved in the game next season, complete with HBO 24/7 and everything.
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I can see Beaver Stadium from my house
so lets have it here.
Now that the celebration's over, lets go beat Ohio State--Joe Paterno
@Ben_Jones88
That being said, I'll be shocked if it happens
Joe has vetoed several events that have tried to take place inside Beaver Stadium, the general feeling is the Classic won’t happen here until he’s gone.
Now that the celebration's over, lets go beat Ohio State--Joe Paterno
@Ben_Jones88
Joe’s got no say in that matter. He’s senile if he thinks he does. The revenue that would create surpasses everything he’d have a say in. That field sees no interest outside of PSU functions untill the spring game. They’d be crazy not to take the revenue that a game like the wC would produce there.
by OrangeNblacK on Feb 22, 2011 7:20 PM EST up reply actions
If you think Joe has no say in the matter, you dont know PSU Football
Joe placed the AD into his job, has changed the university in immense ways, and built penn state into a powerhouse. The field does not have hot water and is not winterized to hold winter events. The field is not like Heinz or the Linc, its actually taken care of and there would be no way they would put that weight and stress onto the field. Its the best in the D1 and that is a major reason why it would never happen.
Lets also think logistics. Penn State does not have parking for 100,000 in winter. The football fans park in the fields, which would be unusuable in winter conditions. They would need university students to operate the stadium and the campus is empty in Christmas/New years.
So, let’s talk about the possibility since it has been reported twice now. Friedman throws the Beaver Stadium possibility back into the mix, but honestly, I’d only accept a game out in State College if the Flyers were playing the Penguins. I don’t want to see that venue wasted on a game between the Flyers and the Rangers or something like that. Then again, I wouldn’t be shocked if the NHL put the Penguins in the game two years in a row.
Still, Lincoln Financial Field seems like a better bet right now. I could see the Flyers hosting a team like the Rangers, who haven’t participated in an outdoor game yet, at the Linc — and that would be fantastic.
That pretty much sums it up. I think we are quickly learning that the NHL is more focused on putting franchises that will maximize their profit than rotating everyone in.
New Years day is on a Sunday
If the NFL has its season, and there is simply too much money to be made to have the NFL cancel its season, the winter classic will be a bust.
I hope it goes to Vancover
Betcha they hold it on NYE.
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by Travis Hughes on Feb 22, 2011 3:39 PM EST up reply actions
Good call.
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by Travis Hughes on Feb 22, 2011 3:59 PM EST up reply actions
Haha, are we sure? I misread your original comment as New Year’s Day night, which NBC would nix. I happen to think they’d balk on NYE night, too, but for different reasons.
I was thinking along the lines that NBC would want the Winter Classic lead in for SNF.
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by Travis Hughes on Feb 22, 2011 4:19 PM EST up reply actions
NBC actually has Carson Daly’s NYE times square coverage.
No SNL that night
by Prometheus74 on Feb 22, 2011 4:37 PM EST up reply actions
I would love for a Flyers and Pens game to be held at Beaver Stadium, especially since I would make it my mission to attend the game as I only live 90 minutes away.
That being said, neither team really deserves another Winter Classic game so soon. On one hand, I don’t blame the league for wanting to market it’s big ticket item to the teams that have the biggest draw, but on the other hand, it is an event that should be done to market some other teams as well. I guess most people assume that a Winter Classic game will never be held in Florida or California because it won’t look like Winter outside, but is that really the point? Granted, it’s called the Winter Classic but I thought the draw was that the game was outdoors, not that there was snow on the ground? Just food for thought.
BOILER UP!! 2010-2011
"You can commit no mistake and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life." - Jean-Luc Picard
I’d like to see two teams who have not had one already get a chance personally … but they have already established that won’t happen since pit already has 2
I really think they should consider a game that features Western Conference teams…
Minnesota could host the game at Target Field or TCF Bank Stadium.
Colorado could host it at Mile High or Coors Field.
I also think it would be cool to see the Isles and Rangers face off in Central Park.
BOILER UP!! 2010-2011
"You can commit no mistake and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life." - Jean-Luc Picard
I would love to see Minnesota, and I think it’s a possibility because they get good local numbers. Here’s where the team’s that have appeared in the Winter Classic ranked in average local TV rating shares last year (their rank in raw households in parenthesis):
1 (1). Pittsburgh Penguins
2 (8). Buffalo Sabres
3 (3). Detroit Red Wings
4 (2). Chicago Blackhawks
T6 (6). Boston Bruins
T6 (5). Philadelphia Flyers
9 (9). Washington Capitals
St. Louis (5 and T10), Minnesota (8 and T10), NYR (13 and 4), New Jersey (17 and 7), and San jose (12 and 12) are probably your best bets. But you have to pair them with an American rival that also has good numbers—all but eliminating Minnesota and San Jose. NYR and New Jersey isn’t happening because they’d want eyes outside of the New York metro area. There aren’t many options left, really, that aren’t St. Louis-Detroit, NYR-Atlantic, NYR-Original Six, or NJ-Atlantic.
Agreed on the Western Confrence idea. Only 2 of the 8 teams in the that have played in the Winter Classic have been from the West. I think it should be Vancover and a team from the south like San Jose, since they would never be able to actually host one themselves.
by philiafan14364 on Feb 22, 2011 4:32 PM EST up reply actions
I’d love to see 2 Western Conference rivals go at it. But the Central Park battle would be a sight to see.
Maybe in a few years they’ll have teams worth watching and it can be done. ;)
"In fact, it is probably safe to say, the statement "I am a hockey fan" is the same as "I hate gary bettman."- bfrank27
How would you handle tickets and seating (or any other logistics) at Central Park? Fun idea, but I don’t see how it’s practical in the least. :-/
Lightning strikes once, Hextall strikes twice!
It could be done. You basically build the ice rink no matter where the game is, stadium or not, so that’s easy. The real issue becomes seating…that I am not 100% sure of. They could make the whole thing SRO but then somehow the rink would have to be build below everyone else.
BOILER UP!! 2010-2011
"You can commit no mistake and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life." - Jean-Luc Picard
Me too. I highly doubt anyone in the upper levels of Hines field could actually see what was happening, let alone the actual puck.
by philiafan14364 on Feb 22, 2011 4:27 PM EST up reply actions
I heard (i think from an interview with panaccio on the radio but it could have been seravelli) that the NHL wants to go back to baseball stadiums as opposed to football stadiums and that Citizens bank park may be more likely than the Linc. Also, Jan 1 is on a Sunday this year so the league has to contend with NFLl games unless they move it to the 31st.
It was the opposite. The NHL likes the football layout.
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by Travis Hughes on Feb 22, 2011 4:00 PM EST up reply actions
That’s what I heard right after the winter classic but in an interview on 97.5 within the last week or two he definitely said baseball and citizens bank more likely. That could be total BS but it’s what was said in the interview. I’m almost positive it was Panaccio but it could have been Seravelli mix their Italian names up in my head sometimes.
by DrunkHockeyFan on Feb 22, 2011 4:05 PM EST up reply actions
personally I think the football stadium worked better
by DrunkHockeyFan on Feb 22, 2011 4:06 PM EST up reply actions
Too bad because the last WC I found unwatchable – they shouldn’t have played in those conditions but had to because the Steelers needed the stadium. If you use a ballpark the game can be postponed without fear of conflicting scheldules.
they could sell 20.000 more tickets at the linc though.
by DrunkHockeyFan on Feb 22, 2011 4:12 PM EST up reply actions
I understand the conundrum the league is in
As much as it sucks, the reason the same teams are getting it again and again is because the NHL doesn’t have the same kind of far-reaching fanbase that the NFL does. Until the WC becomes ingrained into New Year’s Day, which I’m not convinced will happen given the hold that college football and parades have on the day, they have to go with what brings the most ratings and that’s a handful of teams. The first year they could have gone with lesser known teams because of the novelty factor, but now they have to go with popular because otherwise ratings will suffer.
This is a fine line to tread so the game doesn’t become one big joke…like the shootout.
Aristotle was not Belgian, the principle of Buddhism is not "every man for himself", and the London Underground is not a political movement.
I went to the one at Fenway. Better at football fields but they need to have fans up closer to the glass somehow.. some bleachers maybe? You need mongloid fans with bad skin banging on the glass at hockey games… sorry I meant me.
The locality of me wants in in Philadelphia.
The rivalry in me wants it in Penn state if its between us and Pittsburgh.
FLYERROB ! YOU STAY AWESOME FLYERS FANS ! www.naawayland.com Robert Wilson
I want it in State College so that my husband, a PSU alum, will care about a hockey game and might actually want to go see it. If it has to do with Penn State, my husb is all for it. It’s a common trait I’ve observed in many Penn State alumni…
Training for the Phillies 5K Run on March 26th. Hoping I don't embarrass myself :-)
by LeepinLizardz on Feb 22, 2011 5:40 PM EST via mobile reply actions
There is no way that a week 15-17 football Sunday is tougher competition for the NHL’s WC than New Year’s day college football. The NBC doesn’t cover any football except for Sunday night, so a day time hockey game is the perfect competition. ABC will have bowl games all day, they have no NFL affiliation. FOX will probably get a 1:00 and a 4:00 NFL football games, because they have no CFB affiliation. CBS will get a 1 or a 4 NFL game and fill their schedule with college football. ESPN and the ESPN universe will be doing a combonation of NFL and CFB pregame with CFB getting the daytime and nighttime coverage.
All of that said, if NBC wants to get involved in the BIGGEST SPORTS DAY OF THE YEAR, they need an amazing hockey game. If I’m the NFL and the NHL I collaborate with the NHL for a few reasons:
First: There will not be new years day college football in big hockey cities debated in the WC talk.
Second: There WILL be NFL teams to compete with in WC talk.
Why not tie them together? Flyers v. Pens at Beaver Stadium… give the Eagles OR the Steelers the NBC monday night game to cross advertise. There are plenty of strategies to compete with the football markets. IF the NHL can grab 2 big name teams, from big markets that DONT have an NFL game at that slot and DONT have college teams playing at that time (only one I can think of is if Pitt wins the Big East and gets a January Bowl)… you can DOMINATE the markets and ratings for the NHL teams. Pens v. Flyers would be amazing for NY day because the entire north watches that AS LONG AS THEIR NFL TEAMS ARENT PLAYING AT THAT TIME. Both the NHL and NFL use NBC as their game of the week if you will (MNF and Sunday hockey). If the NFL can keep the Detroit Lions, Buffalo Bills, Philly Eagles, Pitt Steelers, Chi Bears, NE Pats away from 1:00 on Sunday (by that point in the season Thursday night, Sat night are regulars) then those MAJOR hockey markets will tune into the WC.
ALSO, if the NFL and NHL and NBC really wanted to work together: Thursday at 5: Bruins AT Rangers… Thursday at 8: Jets at Patriots! Saturday at 5: Detroit Lions @ Denver Broncos (These teams do play this year, you can look it up)… Sunday at 8: Colorado Avalanche at Detroit Lions. All this leads to your sunday matchup (NHL) of Flyers at Pens at Beaver? Give the Eagles or Steelers the Monday night NBC game (Steelers/Pats or Eagles/Cowboys) and let the other one go on Monday night. That would be the most amazing sports weekend EVER.
Last time NYD was on a Sunda (2006), the Bowl games were postponed til Monday, 1/2. So, unless there is a lockout, the only competition for the WC on NYD will be the NFL.
"Want a donut go to dunkin donuts, want a linebacker go to Penn State."
- Cris Carter, NFL Draft, 4/25/09
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