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AHL Outdoor Classic
Teams in the American Hockey League first hosted games outdoors in 2010. Paralleling the National Hockey League's Winter Classic and Heritage Classic, these outdoor games frequently pit two regional rivals in a game in an outdoor venue. Inasmuch as the games have carried a unified brand (most have been independently named and organized), the most commonly used name for these events has been the Outdoor Classic. History2009–10The Mirabito Outdoor Classic was the first-ever outdoor hockey game in the 74-year history of the American Hockey League (AHL) as well as the first minor league outdoor game.[1][2] The game was put on by the Syracuse Crunch and played at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse, New York. The game took place on February 20, 2010, with the Crunch beating the Binghamton Senators, 2–1. The game set an AHL attendance record with 21,508 fans in attendance.[1] The title sponsor of the game was Mirabito Energy Products with other prime sponsors including Time Warner Cable, Toyota, Labatt Blue, Coca-Cola, Dunkin' Donuts, Wynit, the Syracuse Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Renaissance Syracuse Hotel.[2] 2010–11The second outdoor AHL game, known as the Whale Bowl, was held between the Providence Bruins and the recently re-christened Connecticut Whale on February 19, 2011, at Rentschler Field in East Hartford. The game was held one day before the NHL's 2011 Heritage Classic and Hockey Day in America celebrations, and took place as part of USA Hockey's Hockey Weekend Across America promotions.[3] The Whale Bowl was a highlight of a multiple-day "Whalers Hockey Fest" organized by the Whale in honor of the former Hartford Whalers; prior to the game, two other hockey games were held on the outdoor surface, including a college hockey game between Atlantic Hockey Association rivals Army Black Knights and American International College (Army won 4–1),[4] as well as an exhibition between alumni of the Boston Bruins and Hartford Whalers (which ended in a 4–4 tie) which drew 10,000 fans. Announced attendance for the AHL game was 21,673, but due to extreme cold only 15,234 fans showed up at the stadium to see the game.[5] Providence defeated the Whale in a shootout, 5–4.[6] 2011–12AHL teams scheduled two outdoor games for the 2011–12 season, one in the United States and another in Canada (a first for the series). The first of the two was played on January 6, 2012 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Adirondack Phantoms (who previously played in Philadelphia and are the top affiliate for the Philadelphia Flyers), faced the Hershey Bears (themselves a former Flyers farm club). The Phantoms scored with 20.8 seconds left in regulation to send it to overtime before Shane Harper scored 58 seconds into overtime giving the Phantoms a 4–3 victory. The game was held in conjunction with the 2012 NHL Winter Classic, which took place at the same venue four days prior.[7] The game set an AHL attendance record with 45,653 fans attending, more than double the previous record.[8] Another outdoor game was held at Ivor Wynne Stadium in Hamilton, Ontario, which featured a match-up between the Toronto Marlies and the Hamilton Bulldogs, on January 21, 2012.[9] A crowd of 20,565 spectators watched the Marlies beat the Bulldogs, 7–2. Included in the festivities were two college hockey games hosted by the Brock Badgers: a men's test against the Waterloo Warriors and a women's contest against the University of Ontario Institute of Technology Ridgebacks. The event was known as the Steeltown Showdown in reference to Hamilton's steel mills. 2012–13On March 24, 2012, the AHL and the Hershey Bears announced via Twitter that the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and the Hershey Bears were to play the Capital BlueCross AHL Outdoor Classic on January 20, 2013. The game was played at Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey, Pennsylvania.[10] Hershey took the lead in the second period but the Penguins scored a goal in the third to send the game to overtime. Paul Thompson would score in overtime, winning the game 2–1 for the Penguins. The game was played before a crowd of 17,311 spectators.[11] As a result of the 2012–13 NHL lockout, a second planned outdoor game between the Grand Rapids Griffins and Toronto Marlies, to be held in Detroit's Comerica Park on December 30, 2012, as part of the NHL Winter Classic, was moved indoors to Grand Rapids' Van Andel Arena as a regular-season game for the Griffins.[12][13] 2013–14The Rochester Americans hosted the Frozen Frontier on December 13, 2013, taking on the Lake Erie Monsters at Frontier Field. The game kicked off a 10-day festival that included college hockey games hosted by the Rochester Institute of Technology men's and women's teams, high school hockey contests, and a matchup between Americans alumni and the Buffalo Sabres Alumni Hockey Team. The Americans announced their participation on March 21, 2013.[14] Each team wore throwback uniforms for the event, with the Monsters donning a jersey worn by their predecessors, the Cleveland Barons. One year after their game had been originally scheduled, the Grand Rapids Griffins hosted the Toronto Marlies at Comerica Park in Detroit on December 30, 2013, as part of the Hockeytown Winter Festival leading up to the 2014 NHL Winter Classic. The Marlies won in a shootout, 4–3, to become the first team ever to win two AHL outdoor games.[15] 2014–15In lieu of an outdoor game, the stadium showcase for the 2014–15 season was the Toyota Frozen Dome Classic, which was hosted by the Syracuse Crunch on November 22, 2014. The game was played at the Carrier Dome on the campus of Syracuse University and featured the Crunch defeating the Utica Comets 2–1 in front of 30,175 fans, an indoor attendance record for professional hockey in the United States.[16] 2015–16On December 19, 2015, the Stockton Heat hosted the Bakersfield Condors in an outdoor game called the Golden State Hockey Rush at Raley Field in West Sacramento, California. Stockton defeated Bakersfield 3–2 in front of 9,357 fans.[17] The game was originally scheduled for December 18 but was postponed due to rain.[18] 2016–17For the second consecutive season the AHL played an outdoor game in California. The Bakersfield Condors hosted the Ontario Reign on January 7, 2017, at Bakersfield College's Memorial Stadium in the Condorstown Outdoor Classic.[19] The game went on as scheduled despite the sometimes steady rain, which caused puddles to cover the ice. The Condors went on to defeat the Reign 3–2 in overtime. 2017–18The 2018 Capital Blue Outdoor Classic was hosted by the Hershey Bears as part of their 80th anniversary season. The game was held on January 20, 2018, at Hersheypark Stadium against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.[20] Alex Lyon made 41 saves as the Phantoms defeated the Bears, 5-2, in front of 13,091 fans. A second outdoor event, in conjunction with the NHL 100 Classic, was also reportedly under consideration with the recently transplanted Belleville Senators potentially hosting the event at TD Place Stadium at Lansdowne Park, but did not materialize.[21] 2020–21After two seasons without an outdoor game, the Utica Comets planned to host the AIS Empire State Classic between the Comets and the Syracuse Crunch on February 13, 2021.[22] The game would have been played at the Griffiss Business & Technology Park in Rome, New York. However, the game was canceled due to the delayed start to the 2020–21 AHL season due to the COVID-19 pandemic; it has yet to be rescheduled. 2022–23On March 4, 2023, the Cleveland Monsters hosted the Cleveland Monsters Outdoor Classic at Cleveland Browns Stadium against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.[23] The game was scheduled for 1:00 p.m., but the start was delayed until 6:00 p.m. due to unsafe ice conditions caused by increased sunshine throughout the morning.[24] The Monsters went on to defeat the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 3–2 in overtime. Official attendance was 22,875, the third-largest in league history, with several thousand fans still in attendance following the five-hour delay.[25] 2023–24On January 13, 2024, Truist Field in Charlotte, North Carolina hosted the Queen City Outdoor Classic between the Charlotte Checkers and the Rochester Americans. In both the first outdoor game for the Checkers and first outdoor hockey game in Charlotte,[26] the Checkers defeated the Americans 5–2.[27] List of AHL outdoor gamesBolded teams denote winners See alsoReferences
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