It's official: Red Wings to host 2013 Winter Classic
Comments (...)DETROIT (MCT) — Finally! On Thursday, the NHL will reveal all of the details of the Winter Classic to be played between the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.
Here's one guarantee: There will be plenty of outdoor hockey.
And there will be beer. After all, it's Canada's game, eh?
The NHL will make official Thursday one of its worst-kept secrets: The Winter Classic will be held Jan. 1 at the Big House, and a series of hockey events will be held at Comerica Park in downtown Detroit.
The NHL issued a notice early this afternoon that it will have a news conference at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Comerica Park and another at 1:15 p.m. EST at the Big House.
The Free Press first reported Jan. 18 that the Wings would play Toronto on Jan. 1 at Michigan Stadium. The marquee game will be in Ann Arbor, but Comerica Park, Wings owner Mike Ilitch's baseball stadium, also will host major parts of the weeklong activities. It'll host a Legends Alumni game between former members of the Wings and Leafs on Dec. 31 (which team will Larry Murphy play for?).
Earlier in the week, the Great Lakes Invitational, featuring Michigan, Michigan State, Michigan Tech and, this year, Western Michigan, will be played entirely at Comerica, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. The stadium also will host an American Hockey League game between the Grand Rapids Griffins and Toronto Marlies, Ontario Hockey League games between the Plymouth Whalers and London Knights and the Windsor Spitfires and Saginaw Spirit, as well as youth and high school hockey games.
Michigan State coach Tom Anastos attended the winter meeting of the Michigan Associated Press Sports Editors on Wednesday in East Lansing and was asked about playing the GLI at Comerica Park.
"I think some things still have to be worked out," he said. "I think the neat part is to be able to celebrate the game in a unique way with a unique opportunity. It's a cool experience for the kids, in particular. So I'm not sure how that will all ultimately play out, but we're very open to doing that and having that experience for our players. And I think it would be neat to be a part of that whole experience."
The University of Michigan's Board of Regents voted unanimously Wednesday morning to allow the NHL to use the Big House. Regent Denise Ilitch, daughter of Mike Ilitch, recused herself from voting.
The game will be Jan. 1 with an alternate date of Jan. 2. The NHL will pay the university $3 million to use the stadium from Dec. 1 until mid-January.
NHL advertising and other sponsorship arrangements will be implemented throughout the stadium, and a liquor license will be obtained for the service of alcoholic beverages during the event.
A Guinness world-record crowd of 104,173 saw Michigan beat Michigan State, 5-0, in the Big Chill at the Big House on Dec. 11, 2010. U-M athletic director Dave Brandon said Wednesday that "the NHL is hellbent to break the record that we set at the Big Chill ... and I hope they do.
"Then we'll come back and have another hockey game and break their record."
Brandon said the largest crowd at Michigan Stadium was for September's football game against Notre Dame — the first night game in Big House history. It drew a crowd of 114,800.
Brandon said he was approached by the NHL in November.
"We have Michigan Stadium sitting over there empty on New Year's Day 2013," Brandon said. "One of the things you try to do is leverage our assets in a way that provides us opportunities to make them available and also generate some income."
Brandon stressed that the Winter Classic will not be a university event. The NHL would handle all ticket sales.
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