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Wings top Hawks in Winter Classic
Source: Agencies |
January 3, 2009, Saturday
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THE Detroit Red Wings celebrated the New Year with a 6-4 comeback win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday in the NHL's outdoor Winter Classic at Wrigley Field.
For the second successive season the league began the year by returning to its outdoor roots, with the Red Wings and Blackhawks delivering a thriller to cement the game's status as a January 1 tradition.
Trailing 1-3 after the first period, Stanley Cup champion Detroit hit back with three goals in the second period and two in the third.
"This is what we hoped it would be," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said.
"People shouldn't lose sight of the fact 240,000 people signed up for a lottery to get a handful of tickets. So there was great interest in Canada and the United States."
Bettman said the future was bright for the Winter Classic.
"Sponsors have gravitated to this .... including some new ones in a very tough environment. It's really special, it's unique in a way that it takes the game back to its roots."
Wrigley Field is home to the Chicago Cubs baseball team and while it has also played host to the NFL's Chicago Bears, concerts and ski jumping, Thursday's ice hockey game was a first for the 94-year-old stadium.
"I think my favorite part was coming out of the dugout and seeing the crowd and seeing the excitement on peoples faces and hearing the crowd noise," said Red Wings' Nicklas Lidstrom. "Just sucking everything in once you stepped on the field. I had a blast."
The game was the 701st meeting between the long-time rivals and a bit of a grudge match after the Red Wings shutout the Blackhawks on Tuesday to snap Chicago's franchise-best nine-game winning streak.
Jiri Hudler scored twice for the Red Wings with Pavel Datsyuk, Mikael Samuelsson, Brian Rafalski and Brett Lebda also finding the net.
Chicago's Martin Havlat, Ben Eager, Kris Versteeg scored in the opening period and Duncan Keith added their fourth with seconds remaining in the game.
"It's unfortunate the game ended the way it did but they're defending Stanley Cup champions for a reason," said Blackhawks' Patrick Sharp.
Detroit netminder Ty Conklin, the only player to skate in all three of the NHL's outdoor games, picked up the win.
For the second successive season the league began the year by returning to its outdoor roots, with the Red Wings and Blackhawks delivering a thriller to cement the game's status as a January 1 tradition.
Trailing 1-3 after the first period, Stanley Cup champion Detroit hit back with three goals in the second period and two in the third.
"This is what we hoped it would be," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said.
"People shouldn't lose sight of the fact 240,000 people signed up for a lottery to get a handful of tickets. So there was great interest in Canada and the United States."
Bettman said the future was bright for the Winter Classic.
"Sponsors have gravitated to this .... including some new ones in a very tough environment. It's really special, it's unique in a way that it takes the game back to its roots."
Wrigley Field is home to the Chicago Cubs baseball team and while it has also played host to the NFL's Chicago Bears, concerts and ski jumping, Thursday's ice hockey game was a first for the 94-year-old stadium.
"I think my favorite part was coming out of the dugout and seeing the crowd and seeing the excitement on peoples faces and hearing the crowd noise," said Red Wings' Nicklas Lidstrom. "Just sucking everything in once you stepped on the field. I had a blast."
The game was the 701st meeting between the long-time rivals and a bit of a grudge match after the Red Wings shutout the Blackhawks on Tuesday to snap Chicago's franchise-best nine-game winning streak.
Jiri Hudler scored twice for the Red Wings with Pavel Datsyuk, Mikael Samuelsson, Brian Rafalski and Brett Lebda also finding the net.
Chicago's Martin Havlat, Ben Eager, Kris Versteeg scored in the opening period and Duncan Keith added their fourth with seconds remaining in the game.
"It's unfortunate the game ended the way it did but they're defending Stanley Cup champions for a reason," said Blackhawks' Patrick Sharp.
Detroit netminder Ty Conklin, the only player to skate in all three of the NHL's outdoor games, picked up the win.
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