NHL Heritage Classic™: Series History & What to Know for 2023

Snow fall and brisk temperatures are a trademark for the NHL® outdoor regular season game known as the NHL Heritage Classic™. Since debuting in 2003, the NHL Heritage Classic™ has happened six times, always in Canada and mainly consisting of Canadian teams.

NHL Heritage Classic™ FAQ

History of the NHL Heritage Classic™

On November 22, 2003, the Montreal Canadians® played the Edmonton Oilers® at the Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton for the first NHL Heritage Classic™. To start off the festivities, Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Guy Lafleur, and other historic NHL® players competed in an alumni game on the rink before the actual NHL® regular season game began. With the Montreal Canadians winning 4-3, the freezing temperatures and legendary alumni pregame, a precedent was set for what an outdoor NHL® game should be. Since its inception, the NHL Heritage Classic™ has occurred across Canada, historically with Canadian teams. However, the 2022 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic™ was the first to host a non-Canadian team, with the Toronto Maple Leafs® facing off against the Buffalo Sabres®. The idea for an outdoor NHL® game thrilled hockey fans from around the world. For the first NHL Heritage Classic™, after allotting 35,000 tickets to Edmonton Oilers® season ticket holders, a lottery was formed allowing 1,750 fans to purchase four tickets each. This lottery received over 900,000 total entries. After the 2003 debut, the NHL Heritage Classic took™ place in 2011 (Montreal Canadiens® vs. Calgary Flames®), 2014 (Ottawa Senators® vs. Vancouver Canucks®), 2016 (Edmonton Oilers® vs. Winnipeg Jets™), 2019 (Calgary Flames® vs. Winnipeg Jets™), and 2022 (Toronto Maple Leafs® vs. Buffalo Sabres®). After 2003, the NHL Heritage Classic™ was put on the back burner, due to the success of the NHL® Winter Classic; Canada simply did not have the stadium capacity that stadiums in the United States did. However, after its return in 2011, the NHL Heritage Classic™ brought in the most sponsorship dollars for a single event in the history of the NHL®. After the financial success of the 2011 event, the NHL Heritage Classic™ has returned to Canada every two to three years.

The NHL Heritage Classic™ has had a number of historic moments throughout the years. In 2003, Montreal Canadians® goalie José Théodore started the trend of placing a winter beanie over his helmet in the -2 degree Fahrenheit game. Multiple players have continued to adopt this trend for outdoor NHL® games. Goalie skills continue to be admired during the NHL Heritage Classic™ with Miikka Kiprusoff of the Calgary Flames® shutting out the Canadians in a 4-0 win in 2011 and Cam Talbot of the Edmonton Oilers® stopping all 31 shots to defeat the Winnipeg Jets™ 3-0 in the 2016 event. In the 2019 game, a legendary overtime goal was made by Bryan Little of the Winnipeg Jets™ to defeat the Calgary Flames®.