Pens-Sabres Outdoor Game on Jan 1st,2008

allhockey · 09-13-2007, 07:15 PM

From CBS SPLN wire reports "Penguins at Sabres in an outdoor game at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The league is set to announce next week that the Buffalo Sabres will host the Pittsburgh Penguins, a person familiar with the event told the Associated Press, in what would be the NHL's second outdoor game.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the NHL has not made the announcement official. The NHL said Thursday it will "make a major announcement concerning a special event" at a news conference at the stadium Monday. Several media outlets, including the Buffalo News, cited unidentified sources in reporting the planned outdoor game earlier this month.
The league's first outdoor game was at Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium on Nov. 22, 2003, when 57,167 fans showed up to see the Canadiens beat the Oilers at 4-3. Ralph Wilson Stadium is home to the Buffalo Bills and has a capacity of 73,967 seats for American football games. The game will cap a home-and-home series between the Eastern Conference rivals. Buffalo plays at Pittsburgh on Dec. 29. Buffalo is considered an ideal location to host the game, and not only because of its reputation for cold, bitter winters. The Sabres' attendance has risen dramatically: last season's President's Trophy-winning team sold out all of its 41 regular-season games. Buffalo also has the potential to draw many fans from the region, the city located just across the border from Ontario, and 90 minutes from Toronto. It's also an easy drive for Penguins fans, with Pittsburgh only a 3½-hour drive south of Buffalo. Sabres players, reporting for the start of training camp Thursday, were informed by the team not to comment about the nature of the NHL announcement."

This news leaked out last month but now it appears imminent. All and all this is great but can the NHL step on itself anymore? Who is going to watch this with a full slate of bowl games on the tube and will this game even find its way onto an US network that people can find on their cable systems. I am sure CBC will cover it but come on Gary- its a great idea but you can't find a better day/ window for it?

09-13-2007, 07:15 PM	#1
allhockey Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Northern Virginia Metro DC Posts: 635 allhockey allhockey	Pens-Sabres Outdoor Game on Jan 1st,2008 From CBS SPLN wire reports "Penguins at Sabres in an outdoor game at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The league is set to announce next week that the Buffalo Sabres will host the Pittsburgh Penguins, a person familiar with the event told the Associated Press, in what would be the NHL's second outdoor game. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the NHL has not made the announcement official. The NHL said Thursday it will "make a major announcement concerning a special event" at a news conference at the stadium Monday. Several media outlets, including the Buffalo News, cited unidentified sources in reporting the planned outdoor game earlier this month. The league's first outdoor game was at Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium on Nov. 22, 2003, when 57,167 fans showed up to see the Canadiens beat the Oilers at 4-3. Ralph Wilson Stadium is home to the Buffalo Bills and has a capacity of 73,967 seats for American football games. The game will cap a home-and-home series between the Eastern Conference rivals. Buffalo plays at Pittsburgh on Dec. 29. Buffalo is considered an ideal location to host the game, and not only because of its reputation for cold, bitter winters. The Sabres' attendance has risen dramatically: last season's President's Trophy-winning team sold out all of its 41 regular-season games. Buffalo also has the potential to draw many fans from the region, the city located just across the border from Ontario, and 90 minutes from Toronto. It's also an easy drive for Penguins fans, with Pittsburgh only a 3½-hour drive south of Buffalo. Sabres players, reporting for the start of training camp Thursday, were informed by the team not to comment about the nature of the NHL announcement." This news leaked out last month but now it appears imminent. All and all this is great but can the NHL step on itself anymore? Who is going to watch this with a full slate of bowl games on the tube and will this game even find its way onto an US network that people can find on their cable systems. I am sure CBC will cover it but come on Gary- its a great idea but you can't find a better day/ window for it? __________________ Metro DC's top line source for hockey cards since '89 Proud supporter of USA Hockey now on Twitter @allhockeyva