Winter Classic popular with the Television audience as well

The numbers in the stands at Ralph Wilson stadium on New Years Day, some 71,000 strong were pretty impressive and for NBC and CBC the television audience that were warm and snug in front of their television sets looked pretty good as well.

Both CBC and NBC are reported to be happy with the ratings report from Tuesday's outdoor classic from Buffalo, with the CBC finding that it was the second most watched hockey event for an afternoon game to air on the network. Tuesday's game attracted 1.170 million viewers on the CBC, second only to the 2.16 million viewers of Wayne Gretzky's final game in April 1999.

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And while that's a pretty good number, it didn't come close to the original outdoor shinny festival the Heritage Classic of 2003. That game which was played on a cool and crisp Edmonton evening, attracted 2.747 million viewers to their televisions that day, making it the second highest average audience for a regular season game.

Over at NBC the 2.6 rating and share of 5, was the best overnight for an NHL regular-season game in almost 12 years. Now while that needs to be put in perspective against ABC's monster 9.9 rating and 19 share of the same time slot with their Capital One Bowl game, which featured a tight contest between Michigan and Florida. It Still is a pretty good number for NBC to put forward, especially considering the fact that they don't actually pay any money for broadcasting hockey.

Of course reality may very well come back to the American broadcast industry in two weeks when NBC begins their regular season coverage of the NHL, which last year barely got above a rating of one on broadcast days.

Still, the spectacle of the event has the NHL thinking of making it a more frequent part of the NHL package, while some are suggesting that it be an annual event, the word is that the league is leaning more towards making it a bi-annual event.

The lobbying is already beginning to be name a host city, with Montreal apparently interested in the event, some suggest Ottawa as a natural with the game played on the Rideau Canal and there are those that feel a Central Park game would be the kind of attraction that might even bring out New Yorkers in record numbers.

Of course, an outdoor event is always at the mercy of the weather gods and disaster can lurk with every change of the wind or drop or rise in temperature.

Still, it did provide a pretty interesting afternoon of hockey, attracting some new fans and rewarding some of the longtime faithful.

Providing they don't decide to go to the well too often, it could make for a welcome addition every couple of years to the long regular season.

Snow, shovels, Sidney and showtime!

The star of the show was as it should be the up and rising phenom of the NHL Sidney Crosby, however a close second had to be the ice rescue crew that frequently made pilgrimages to the ice surface of Ralph Wilson Stadium, seeking to keep the surface safe for play and at least manageable to get the outdoor spectacle complete.

The Sabres and Penguins seemed to be enjoying themselves as the snow would fall, first in light flakes then in heavier flakes occasionally as sleet, pond hockey it was as though they had cleared a space out on Lake Erie for the occasion.

The game itself resembled many of the backyard games or community rink games of the players youth, there were occasional setbacks as the puck would get slowed by an impromptu snowbank or a patch of ice that wasn't particularly helping the cause, but like the outdoor games of days gone by you just kept pushing forward, always moving the puck as lethargic as it might seem at times.

The scoring seemed to be best done as the game began, while the players still had their jump and the ice wasn't too chopped up. And as if by strategy, Sidney Crosby who by day's end would be the storybook hero of the day almost got the day underway with a goal. Crosby was taking the puck into the Buffalo end of the rink when a shot towards the net went wide, a few seconds later it would appear on the stick of Colby Armstrong who who score the first goal of the game less than a minute into outdoor festival.

The Sabres not to be denied at their own party would return the favour in the second period, a portion of the game which they dominated out shooting the Pens 18-2, with Brian Campbell tying the game putting a goal behind Ty Conklin in the Penguins net.

The third period slowed down significantly, the ice crew more and more frequent visitors to the surface and a blast of wind and snow making things a tad more difficult that in the first two periods. Not surprisingly there were no goals scored in the final twenty minutes or the overtime, leading to a magical shoot out with snow swirling and Sidney set to put the cap on the day's entertainment.

While the 72,000 or so in attendance probably weren't happy with the score they certainly seemed to have enjoyed the spectacle, the largest crowd to see an NHL regular season game stayed for the most part right to that final Crosby shot. Making Buffalo for the day the living breathing example of what a hockey town is all about.

As they roared their way through the shootout, the time came for the most marketed face of the NHL to line up at centre ice and take his shot, a deke here and shovel through a hole there and it was all over, the Penguins winning the game, the Sabres winning the title of best fans in the NHL in frozen football stadium in January.

The big winner on the day however, the NHL. Which besides attracting over 70,000 fans to a hockey game gained some amazing visual attention on NBC, which gave the game the full NBC deal. Bob Costas as the host, back stories of days gone by (including an entertaining if slightly dated showcase of the old Slapshot movie) and of course featuring everything Sidney.

Likewise, the CBC pulled out its A list of talent for an afternoon trip to perhaps the closest thing to a Canadian city in the USA. Not to be out featured by their American counterparts, the CBC made sure that there was enough material to cover the frequent stoppages in play and enough heart tugging moments to fill up any CRTC mandates for years to come.

But most importantly, on a New Years Day in Buffalo, the rising star of the league delivered as expected, timing as they say is everything and Crosby, like a few of the more famous names of the past knew exactly when to make his mark.

Mr. Bettman should have the thank you card in the mail tomorrow morning!

National Post--Winter Classic lives up to its billing

Global National--Crosby helps Winter Classic live up to its billing

Globe and Mail--Crosby steals the show

Globe and Mail--An outdoor party

Globe and Mail--Conklin ends long wait

New York Times--Winter wonderland for Crosby and NHL

New York Times--The Perfect Snowstorm: The Winter Classic Scores

ESPN--Our grades from the winter classic

ESPN--The outdoors are great, but this should not become a regular NHL fixture

Sports Illustrated--The Great Outdoors

Canada.com--Bring outdoor game to a non-NHL city

Toronto Star--Outdoor match scores with fans

CBC--Winter wonderland for Crosby, Pens
NBC--Snowy shootout

Buffalo News--Crosby's shootout goal ices Sabres

Pittsburgh Tribune Review--Pens win winter classic in a shootout

Pittsburgh Post Gazette--Sid the Kid's shootout winner puts team three points behind first-place New Jersey