2016 NHL Winter Classic Festivities

The 2016 NHL Winter Classic will have a lot of planned events in Boston, Massachusetts

New Years Day is around the corner, the day of the annual National Hockey League’s Winter Classic game. The contest draws hockey fans together in outdoor stadiums in frigid temperatures. This year pits the hated rivals Montreal Canadiens against the Boston Bruins at Gillette Stadium, in Foxboro, Massachusetts. National Football League fans are well aware that Gillette Stadium is the home of the New England Patriots.

The idea of playing an NHL hockey game outdoors originated in Edmonton, Alberta Canada between the Montreal Canadiens and the Edmonton Oilers in 2003 in what was known as The Heritage Classic. There was a bit of a break from the novelty of outdoor games. A few years later, it resurfaced and started an annual New Years Day tradition in 2008 when the Pittsburgh Penguins visited the NFL’s Ralph Wilson Stadium, home of the Buffalo Bills, and played the home team Buffalo Sabres. During the inaugural game the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Buffalo Sabres 2-1 in a shootout. The attendance at the game was 71,217 who braved the winter weather in the state of New York. This year’s match-up is Boston’s second and Montreal’s first Winter Classic contest.

Gillette Stadium opened up in 2002 for the Patriots. The seating capacity is 68,756 and there’s a good chance that the fan attendance will sky-rocket as fans from both cities flock to the city of Boston to see the original six franchises.

This contest will be very special, but the festivities are being added to make it even more memorable as they are having a first ever Women’s Winter Classic game between the women of Les Canadiennes and Boston Pride. According to CBC.ca, the game will take place on Thursday afternoon, New Years Eve at 2 PM ET.

There will also be an alumni game between the NHL alumni players of the Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins which will take place at 3:30 PM.