Yay?
It’s been six long years since the NHL played a game at Wrigley Field. While not quite the streak that the Cubs went through between World Series, it’s still quite a drought in the modern sports world. Luckily for Chicago fans that streak ends as reports are out that the Chicago Blackhawks will host the St. Louis Blues among the ivy-covered walls for the 2025 Winter Classic. For the rest of us, we can complain about a franchise with questionable behavior in the past getting propped up as the face of the league again.
If the reports are true, it will be the fifth time the Blackhawks have played in the Winter Classic and the third time they’ve hosted it. Despite playing in more Winter Classics than any other team, they have never won one, losing out to the Detroit Red Wings in 2009, the Washington Capitals in 2015, the Blues in 2017, and the Boston Bruins in 2019. They do have one outdoor victory, beating the Pittsburgh Penguins in Soldier Field in a Stadium Series game.
It feels like the league is retreating to safe ground after this season’s Winter Classic in Seattle wasn’t the highest-rated game of the regular season, the first time that’s happened since the series began. The league goes to a city and a venue that will draw well and can continue to build up a player they hope is the next generational star in Connor Bedard (who knows, he could be skating with Macklin Celebrini and the NHL will get two young stars in one game).
While the Blues are a regional rival for the Blackhawks, they’re not really an ideal team for the league to try and sell as they’re in a bit of a transitional period and lack in marketable players. Why not bring in Colorado or even Detroit? Alex DeBrincat skating in his old home town wouldn’t be fun TV viewing for the casual fan? Heck, most Chicago hockey fans dislike the Predators more than they do the Blues.
There was likely some pressure on the league from their TV partners to feature a traditional ratings powerhouse so it would have likely been the Bruins, the Rangers, or the Penguins if it hadn’t been the Blackhawks. With Chicago, the league gets to at least feature Bedard. Good for them.
Other Hockey News
Women in Hockey: Barbara Underhill [NHL.com]
One of the biggest keys to the Lightning’s success in developing their prospects, Underhill has been with the team as a special consultant since 2011. She has been a huge reason why we’re not really concerned when the Lightning draft a player whose skating skills might be a bit below par.
Enter Upper Deck’s My MVP Contest [Upper Deck]
Are you the biggest Lightning fan out there? Why not enter the contest and show the rest of the league (and possibly win Stanley Cup tickets)?
Lightning hope to pick up where they left off [Tampa Bay Times]
“It was tough for us, because we were on a bit of a roll,” head coach Jon Cooper said. “But for me, it doesn’t matter. When you get a break like that, and especially to see a lot of the injured guys on the ice and looking like they’re ready to go, it’s just kind of a rejuvenation.”
Darren Raddysh helping to guide Syracuse rookies [The Hockey News]
The Bald Eagle is looking over some of the fledgling young rookies, much like Victor Hedman and Mikhail Sergachev helped him when he came up in the league all of a year ago.
Bolts Beginnings: Anthony Cirelli [Tampa Bay Lightning]
Tony Two Goals gets the Bolts Beginnings treatment as we get a look at his early days in Woodbridge, Ontario.
Three options on the table for the Arizona Coyotes [Daily Faceoff]
It appears that NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh is putting pressure on the Coyotes and the league to come up with a permanent solution to the team’s arena issues. Frank Seravalli is reporting that an announcement on their future could come as soon as this weekend while Commissioner Bettman has stated it should be addressed in “the next few weeks”. The three options right now are to finalize a location in Arizona and star construction post haste, sell the team to an owner who can get a deal done with either private money or an existing site, or sell the team to Ryan Smith and move it to Salt Lake City (swear to god if they do this less than four months after I left SLC, I will go ballistic).
Jets’ Dillon assessed match penalty for hit against Pittsburgh’s Noel Acciari [Sportsnet]
Yeah, Brandon Dillon, don’t do that. Left the ice to make the hit and direct contact to the head. That’s going to be a few games and a hefty donation to the players’ emergency fund.
Projecting Team Canada’s 2025 Four Nations roster [Sportsnet]
Justin Bourne has Point and Cirelli in his top four lines with Stamkos as a possibility as well. It would be nice to see Stammer in a Team Canada sweater at some point.
