2022 NHL Winter Classic

The 2022 NHL Winter Classic is an upcoming outdoor regular season National Hockey League (NHL) game, part of the Winter Classic series. It is scheduled for January 1, 2022 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota between the St. Louis Blues and the Minnesota Wild.[1] The game was originally scheduled for 2021 but was postponed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

2022 NHL Winter Classic
123 Total
St. Louis Blues --- -
Minnesota Wild --- -
DateJanuary 1, 2022
ArenaTarget Field
CityMinneapolis, Minnesota
← 2020 2023 →

History

The NHL announced on January 1, 2020, that the 2021 Winter Classic would be hosted by the Minnesota Wild at Target Field.[2] The league then announced on February 23, 2020, that the St. Louis Blues would be the visiting team.[3] The league had previously contemplated Target Field as a host for a Winter Classic game, touring the stadium both in 2018 and 2019, and observing how the area hosted the NCAA Final Four in 2019[4] and Super Bowl LII in 2018. It was to be the Wild's second outdoor game after hosting the 2016 NHL Stadium Series against the Chicago Blackhawks at TCF Bank Stadium.[2] This was also to be the Blues' second outdoor game after hosting the 2017 NHL Winter Classic against the Blackhawks at Busch Stadium.[3]

The NHL delayed the start of the 2020–21 season to January 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic having forced the 2019–20 playoffs to conclude in late-September. If the Winter Classic were to be held, it would have likely served as the season opener for both teams.[5] On October 22, 2020, the NHL announced that the 2021 Winter Classic, and the 2021 All-Star Game in Sunrise, Florida, had been postponed due to "uncertainty as to when we will be able to welcome our fans back to our games," as fan participation and accompanying events are considered "integral to the[ir] success." The NHL stated that both events would not return until 2022 at the earliest, and that these events could be held in Minneapolis and Sunrise "in the near future" (but not yet naming them the 2022 hosts).[6][7]

In April 2021, TNT acquired the rights to the U.S. television broadcast; the other NHL national broadcaster, ESPN/ABC, had a full slate of college football bowl games on New Year's Day and was unable to accommodate the Winter Classic.[8] On June 28, 2021, the league confirmed that the Winter Classic between the Blues and the Wild at Target Field will be scheduled for 2022.[1] The league further announced on September 27, 2021, that it will be the first Winter Classic scheduled for primetime. This was both at the request of TNT, and to avoid a repeat of the sunlight and heat issues that occurred during the previous season's NHL Outdoors at Lake Tahoe. The American radio rights will be held by Sports USA Radio Network, the first in a four-year agreement with Sports USA.[9]

With the game being scheduled for a Saturday night, it will air north of the border under the Hockey Night in Canada banner on Sportsnet.[10]

References
  1. "NHL Announces 2021-22 Outdoor Games and 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend" (Press release). NHL. June 28, 2021.
  2. "Wild to host 2021 NHL Winter Classic at Target Field" (Press release). NHL.com. January 1, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  3. "Blues to play Wild in 2021 NHL Winter Classic" (Press release). NHL.com. February 23, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2020.
  4. McLellan, Sarah (January 1, 2020). "Wild lands Winter Classic at Target Field for 2021". Star Tribune. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  5. "NHL, NHLPA targeting Jan. 1 as start date for 2020-21 season". Sportsnet. October 7, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
  6. "NHL postpones Winter Classic, All-Star Weekend for upcoming season". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  7. "NHL postpones 2021 Winter Classic, All-Star Game". ProHockeyTalk | NBC Sports. 2020-10-22. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  8. Porter, Rick (April 26, 2021). "WarnerMedia Snags Remaining NHL TV Rights as NBC Bows Out". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  9. Shipley, Reice (2021-10-08). "SportsUSA Grabs NHL's National Radio Rights". Barrett Media. Retrieved 2021-10-11.
  10. "2022 Winter Classic between Wild, Blues to be played at night Jan. 1". NHL. September 27, 2021.
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