New York hockey will play its fifth outdoor game in history on Saturday when the Devils take on the Flyers at MetLife Stadium.
Sunday’s second round will follow soon after, with the Rangers and Islanders resuming their battle in New York after a rivalry that went on hiatus in 2023.
The Blueshirts have played in all four of the previous outdoor games in the Capital Region over the past 12 years, going undefeated in two Winter Classic games and two Stadium Series games.
The Post looks back at each of the outdoor games so far.
2012 Winter Classic
CEisen’s Bank Park
Rangers 3, Flyers 2
The Rangers’ first foray into the wilderness resulted in a dramatic victory, but also some controversy.
After the Flyers took a 2-0 lead, the Blueshirts tied the game with a pair of goals from Mike Rupp in Philadelphia, then Brad Richards scored at 5:21 of the third to make it 3-2. and eventually held that lead.
However, at the 19:40 mark of the third, Ryan McDonough controversially covered the puck in the crease, earning the Flyers a penalty shot.
Henrik Lundqvist made the save on Daniel Briere, but then-Rangers coach John Tortorella still questioned whether the NHL colluded in pushing the marquee event into overtime in the postgame press conference. presented.
“They called for a penalty shot, which I still don’t understand. I don’t know if NBC worked with the referees to send it to overtime,” Tortorella said. “It started with a no call.” [Marion Gaborik]. [He’s] While walking, he turns into a pitchfork in the stomach, and then everything begins to go against us. [Ian Walsh and Dennis LaRue] Both were excellent referees, but I thought the match was badly denied. Tonight, during that third hour, I decided I had had enough. I don’t know if they are having a meeting there or what. ”
Tortorella was immediately fined $30,000 by the league, and NHL Senior Vice President of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell said, “Comments that challenge the integrity of the league, its officials, and broadcast partners are acceptable.” There are no explanations or excuses,” he said. ”
The Rangers coach later apologized for what he called a “sarcastic comment,” and also apologized to then-Flyers GM Paul Holmgren and the two referees.
2014 Stadium Series
at yankee stadium
Rangers 7, Devils 3
The first of two games the Rangers played at Yankee Stadium ended in a rout, and 41-year-old Martin Brodeur hit rock bottom in what was his final season in New Jersey.
The game was delayed for just over an hour due to sunlight, but after a scheduled puck drop at 12:30, the game started at 1:38 and the Rangers scored four scoreless goals in the second period. 3-2, increasing the Devils lead to six points. After Corey Schneider found the back of the net, Derek Stepan added a third goal for the Devils, resulting in a -3 loss.
Brodeur, who was already Schneider’s backup, asked Devils coach Pete DeBoer after the second period if he might be better off sitting in the third.
“Tough break, tough game to be a part of,” Brodeur said after the game. “You look forward to these types of events and when you get a result like that, it’s not as much fun.”
Of course, the opposite was true for the Blueshirts.
2014 Stadium Series
at yankee stadium
Rangers 2, Islanders 1
After the Rangers-Devils game was blessed with pleasant weather, the Blueshirts and Islanders played a close game in sub-zero temperatures, with Daniel Carcillo scoring the game-winning run at 4:36 of the third inning.
A few days after defeating Brodeur, Lundqvist made 30 saves, surpassing Evgeny Nabokov’s 32 saves in a ski cap.
For the Rangers, a 12-game winning streak that saw them go 8-3-1 was an exclamation point and the first sign that 2014 could be special.
They eventually made it to the Stanley Cup Finals, but lost to the Kings.
“We want to win these games so that in a few years, in a few months, whatever, we can look back and just smile and not think about the mistakes and the losses and all that,” Lundqvist said. Told. “The next two days will be memories I will never forget.”
As time passes, the Islanders also remember this game fondly.
“To be honest, I don’t remember much about the game itself,” Cal Clutterbuck told the Post this week. “I remember it being very cold, much colder than usual. I remember the heater on the bench being so hot that I overheated sitting on the bench and my nuts froze when I was on the ice. Masu.
“But I just remember that it was cool. The crowd noise is a louder roar, but further away. I think there were snowflakes falling, too.”
2018 Winter Classic
Citi field
Rangers 3, Sabers 2 (OT)
Lundqvist and the Rangers likewise salvaged a lackluster performance against a struggling Sabers team, improving to a perfect 4-0 in outdoor games thanks to JT Miller’s overtime game-winner.
In the end, it would be one of the last great memories from his time with the Rangers, and just a month later management would announce that they would trade Miller, Rick Nash, Ryan McDonough and others before the deadline to rebuild the franchise. After sending The Letter, his time with the Rangers was over.
Then, as now, the details of the season were mostly incidental to the event.
“The pregame, the warmups, the national anthem, the bald eagles, the high-flying, those are the moments you can’t lose,” Kevin Shattenkirk told reporters that day. “Then I looked from the stands to the bench, took it all in, and had a smile on my face the entire game.”
