With temperatures dipping below -10, there were a lot of very hardy folks in Michigan to watch the 2014 Winter Classic.
A few years back the NHL hit on the idea of playing a game outdoors every year to a huge crowd. It sounds crazy but it worked and since the first Winter Classic in 2008, the concept has grown bigger and better for the NHL. Played on New Year’s Day, Michigan Stadium was this year’s host venue, where the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs faced off in the sixth edition of the showpiece.
But this one was different for two reasons. It was much bigger, and much colder. The record attendance to date was at the first game in 2008, when 71,217 turned up to Ralph Wilson Stadium to watch Pittsburgh beat Buffalo.
Yesterday, an astonishing 105,491 turned up at the home of University of Michigan football to watch the game, an enormous crowd in any sport. However, that massive crowd turned up in pretty miserable conditions too. With snow falling during the game, the mercury was registering at a brisk -10, while the wind chill made it feel more like -18. That’s commitment.
The game ended up in a shootout, which was won by Toronto.
Anyway, enjoy the snaps.
