The 2008 NHL Winter Classic also known as the AMP Energy NHL Winter Classic was a National Hockey League game played on January 1, 2008, at 1:27 p.m. ET, outdoors at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, New York. It was the first regular-season outdoor professional ice hockey game to be played in the United States, and was sponsored by AMP Energy. It was the successor to the Heritage Classic, the NHL's first regular-season outdoor game, played in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Ralph Wilson Stadium is the home to the National Football League's Buffalo Bills, and because of this, the game is colloquially referred to as the "Ice Bowl."
The game, which was played at a temporary ice rink built on the football field at Ralph Wilson Stadium, set an NHL attendance record of 71,217. The home team was the Buffalo Sabres, and they hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins won the game, 2-1 in a shootout, on a goal by captain Sidney Crosby.
The Sabres held a Winter Classic "house party" at HSBC Arena during the game where another 11,000 fans saw the game shown live on the arena's video scoreboard with synched-up audio from the team's radio coverage. The Buffalo Sabres Alumni Hockey Team played a pre-game at the HSBC Arena as part of the house party festivities.
Buffalo Sabres anthem singer Doug Allen sang the Canadian national anthem, as is customary at Sabres home games. Irish tenor Ronan Tynan performed "God Bless America" before the game at the stadium.
Read more about 2008 NHL Winter Classic: Preparations, Attendance, Television and Radio Coverage, Pregame, Rule Changes, Game Summary, Team Rosters, Future Games
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and come away.
For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone;
The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;”
—Bible: Hebrew The Song of Solomon (l. II, 10–12)
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