In honor of the 10-year anniversary and upcoming Winter Classic in New York City, this season the NHL put together a documentary of the first Winter Classic called ‘NHL Network Originals: The First NHL Winter Classic, Hockey Goes Outside’. It featured everything from how the rink was constructed, player excitement, the fan experience, weather concerns and game itself.
The documentary that was narrated by Michael Keaton had commentary from players like Sidney Crosby, Ryan Miller, Brian Campbell, Jason Pominville, Tyler Kennedy and Colby Armstrong. Darren Pang, Doc Emrick, Lindy Ruff and Michel Therrien add commentary from their perspective as well.
As they went through the game itself you get some excellent insight from people who were on the scene. As well as some looks inside the locker rooms between the periods and on the ice.
Sidney Crosby as expected is featured throughout the documentary. The second star was the fans and how passionate they were about the game. From the tailgating early in the day to the reaction of the Sabres goal and the fact that 70,000 people turned out to see a hockey game.
The third star was the weather and the havoc it reeked on the ice conditions. We all remember the snow globe pictures, but the built-up snow caused problems throughout the day.
The NHL will air the documentary for everyone to view on Wednesday, December 20th at 8 PM on the NHL Network.