The Curse of the Winter Classic
Today being Friday the 13th, I found it fitting to talk about curses. It also seemed fitting that the league announced last night that the Rangers and Flyers would be facing off in the 2012 Winter Classic at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia next January.
The Winter Classic began in 2008 when the Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres faced off in front of 71,217 fans in Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo. Since then, the NHL has had three other outdoor games in Chicago, Boston, and Pittsburgh.
The mysterious thing about these great outdoor games was the season outcome of the participants.
In 2008 the Penguins defeated the Sabres 2-1 in a shootout. At the end of the season, the Penguins wound up losing to the Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Finals.
In 2009 the Red Wings got a chance to play against the Chicago Blackhawks at Wrigley Field. The Red Wings won the game 6-4, but then lost to the Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals.
In 2010 the Bruins faced off against the Flyers at Fenway Park in Boston. The Bruins won 2-1 in OT, but it turned out that both teams would wind up suffering in the playoffs. The Bruins found themselves up 3-0 against the Flyers in the semi-finals, but wound up blowing it and losing in seven games. The Flyers would go on to the Stanley Cup Finals, but lost to the Blackhawks.
This season the Capitals beat the Penguins 3-1 in front of 68,111 fans at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. The Penguins would wind up losing Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin to season ending injuries which led to an early exit in the playoffs, and the one seeded Capitals were swept in the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning.
In 2012, the Flyers will partake in their second Winter Classic while the Rangers will finally make their debut. Although these two teams aren't necessarily rivals like the Rangers and Islanders or Devils and Flyers, it will certainly draw a great outcome in both the Tri-State area and the rest of the United States.
Fans of both the Rangers and Flyers will have to hope that this Winter Classic curse is "myth" like the Madden Curse and the Sports Illustrated cover jinx. We will see in 2012, but either way this should turn out to be a great game all around.
NOTE: The 2012 classic will be the first that will not be played on New Year's Day. The game is scheduled for Monday, January 2nd because the Eagles will be facing the Redskins in Philadelphia on New Year's Day next door.
