The National Hockey League just announced that Dodger Stadium will host a regular season hockey game. On January 25, 2014 the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks will go head to head outdoors for all to see. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said, “the Ducks and the Kings will write the next chapter in the exciting story of NHL hockey in Southern California.”
This NHL game will be one of many outside games in the 2014 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series. The ice will be kept from melting “with a multi-million dollar ice making system that includes a 300-panel floor that is kept frozen by truck, with 1500 gallons of water pushed through it per minute to create ice,” according to Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo! Sports.
This is the first time that the NHL has done something like this in Southern California. If the marketing & sponsorship is ran correctly this event will be exciting for the fans in attendance and will also generate revenue for the involved parties. The Hockey City Classic was a very similar event to this one. The Classic took place earlier this year in Chicago at Solider Field, the outdoor stadium for the National Football League’s Chicago Bears. Although the venue was used to host college hockey it had an amazing turnout. It wasn’t just a hockey game; it was a two-week event of winter festivities for Chicago residents. The winter activities included “free public skating; youth, high school and adult hockey events; and private ice rentals,” according to Intersport. The event was focused on giving back to the city of Chicago and that is what the residents appreciated the most.
The outdoor match between the Kings and the Ducks will be a great success, residents are already excited and the news was only announced a few hours ago. But, it will be a greater success if the parties involved market the outdoor 2014 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series as a community event with winter activities. Intersport and other contributing parties to the Hockey City Classic received a return on their investment and the Chicago community loved the event, California will have a similar outcome. I am looking forward to the development of this project, California stay tuned.
Related articles
- PHT: Outdoor game at Dodger Stadium officially set (prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com)
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