The 2019 Winter Classic will feature the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins facing off at Notre Dame Stadium, according to Barstool Sports Chicago. It will be the fifth time in the past six years that the Blackhawks will be a part of the NHL’s annual slate of outdoor games.
Blackhawks, Bruins will play 2019 Winter Classic at Notre Dame Stadium, per report
Chicago will return to the NHL’s outdoor slate after a year off.
Photo by Scott Kane/Getty Images
Notre Dame has never hosted an NHL game, so this will be a first for the university. An announcement hasn’t been made yet, but is expected in the coming weeks.
The news means that Chicago will be spending just one year off the league’s outdoor schedule. The team most recently played the St. Louis Blues at Busch Stadium on Jan. 2, 2017. It’s become a bit of a running joke that nobody gets the special fresh air treatment more than the Hawks.
That’ll happen when you’re a marquee team in one of the United States’ largest markets, though, and clearly both the NHL and NBC value the audience that comes with putting the Blackhawks in the limelight. Even if that’s come at the expense of showing off some of hockey’s up-and-coming franchises.
The Bruins have played outdoors twice, mostly recently at Gillette Stadium against the Canadiens last year. They’ve never been the road team in an outdoor game.
If you’re looking for outdoor games that don’t involve the Blackhawks, this year has you covered. The Canadiens and Senators will play the “NHL 100 Classic” at TD Place Stadium on Dec. 16. A few weeks later, the Rangers host the Sabres at Citi Field for the Winter Classic on New Year’s Day. The slate wraps up with the Maple Leafs facing the Capitals at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis on March 3.
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