The NHL has set the stage for next season’s Winter Classic, and now the date is locked in: the Colorado Avalanche and Utah Mammoth will meet on New Year’s Eve at Rice-Eccles Stadium, with puck drop scheduled for 4 p.m. local time.
That gives the league a late-afternoon start in Utah and, as commissioner Gary Bettman put it, a prime-time window back East.
“It’ll be late afternoon, early evening, prime time in the East,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a release. “Some of it will be under the lights, and we think it’ll be very cool.”
The matchup was first revealed in January, when it was announced that Colorado would be the visiting team for Utah’s turn as Winter Classic host. Rice-Eccles Stadium, home of the Utah Utes, will serve as the backdrop for the outdoor showcase.
For Colorado, this will be a new box to check. The Avalanche have plenty of outdoor experience already, including a 2016 Stadium Series game against the Detroit Red Wings at Coors Field, another Stadium Series meeting with the Los Angeles Kings at the Air Force Academy in 2020, and the 2021 Lake Tahoe game against the Vegas Golden Knights that was played without fans. But this will be their first Winter Classic.
Utah is even newer to the outdoor stage. The Mammoth will be playing in their first-ever outdoor game, and the event will mark only the fourth time the Winter Classic has been staged at a college football stadium. The previous six editions were held at baseball fields.
In Other News...
Avalanche Fans May Need To Rethink Fabian Lysell Fast
Fabian Lysell is the kind of summer addition that can look like a depth move in July and something much more interesting by the time camp opens. The Avalanche brought in the former first-round pick earlier this summer, and that alone gives the deal a different feel than a routine flyer. Lysell still carries the upside that made him a premium selection, which is why Colorado can view him in more than one way as it sorts out the rest of its roster.
For the Avalanche, the real question is whether Lysell can make himself hard to ignore at the NHL level. If he does, he could force his way into the conversation as a roster player rather than just another name in the system, and his place in the organization will also be shaped by the contract picture around him. Colorado does not have to decide everything right away, but the next stretch will go a long way toward showing whether Lysell is part of the plan or simply part of the asset pool. [Read more 🡒]
Avalanche Opening Night And Winter Classic Dates Are Finally Set
The Avalanche finally have their opening-night date set, and for the first time in franchise history theyll be kicking off a season in September. It gives Colorado a little extra runway before the grind begins, and it also locks in the kind of early-season spotlight that comes with being one of the leagues marquee teams.
Colorados calendar also now includes a Winter Classic date, adding another showcase game to a season that already has plenty of intrigue. Around the league, the Red Wings are moving on from Steve Yzerman as president and general manager, Trevor Zegras has landed a lucrative extension in Philadelphia, and Anthony Mantha is headed to the Devils, but for the Avalanche the immediate focus is on how the first stretch of the schedule will shape up once the puck drops. [Read more 🡒]
Avalanche Land Near Bottom Of Aggression Ranking And Fans Know Why
A new study from Casino Guru put a number to something Avalanche fans have long recognized: Colorado played with far more speed and skill than bite last season. The ranking used hits, penalty minutes, major penalties, fights, and suspensions or fines to build an Aggression Index, and the Avalanche ended up near the bottom of the NHL list, a reflection of a team that usually prefers to skate past trouble rather than lean into it.
Colorados place in the standings of that category fits the way this roster is built and the way it tries to win. The Avalanche have never been mistaken for a heavy, grinding club, and the postseason only sharpened that contrast as opponents looked for ways to make them uncomfortable physically. It also leaves an interesting comparison point for the teams that did manage to drag Colorado into a more punishing style, even if the most successful version of that approach came from a different Western Conference foe. [Read more 🡒]