Winter Classic Could Return To Buffalo For 20th Anniversary Showdown

The NHL Winter Classic will be held in Miami this year, and it remains to be seen where the league will decide to take its premier outdoor event in 2027. However, it looks like we may have a pretty good idea of where the Winter Classic will be held in 2028, and it could be returning to where it all began.

Or, at least, that's what the league is shooting for.

"I’m not making an announcement or committing to it, but we’re kind of focused on whether or not we can do it around the 20th anniversary of the original Winter Classic," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said on Thursday at the Buffalo Sabres season-opener, per TSN. "We’ve already had discussions about the possibility of an outdoor game at Highmark, and that’s something that we think would be great."

Now, this would be a fantastic idea.

"We’re grateful that we did it here first," he said. "And we are going to come back, I promise."

Also, how has it been nearly 20 years since the first Winter Classic?. I mean, I understand how time works, but this just doesn't seem possible.

The original NHL Winter Classic was held at Highmark Stadium (back then it was known as Ralph Wilson Stadium) and pitted the Buffalo Sabres against the Pittsburgh Penguins. It got the ball rolling for what became the annual event it is today, and was about as perfect as you can get, with snow and an overtime thriller.

I was 12 and still remember watching this game clear as day.

If the league sets something up to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the original Winter Classic, they could play inside the new Highmark Stadium, which is slated to open next summer.

Obviously, the Sabres would be on the bill, but they'd have to play the Pens, right? That seems like a given.

If Orchard Park is the site of another Winter Classic, it might be in the running to be the outdoor hockey capital of the world.

In addition to the Winter Classic, the stadium hosted a game between the US and Canada during the 2018 World Junior Championship, which Team USA won 4-3 in a shootout, while wearing Bills-inspired jerseys.