TAMPA — When the NHL scheduled its Stadium Series outdoor game for Tampa on Feb. 1, there were some assumed certainties.
It would be held at Raymond James Stadium, home of the NFL’s Buccaneers. The Tampa Bay Lightning would host the Boston Bruins, two divisional rivals battling the elements for crucial points. There would be pirates, thanks to the annual Gasparilla festival happening on the same weekend in downtown Tampa. And based on historical weather data, the NHL could count on temperatures around 70 degrees.
The venue, teams and pirates all showed up this weekend. The Floridian heat did not. The forecast for Sunday’s Stadium Series game is straight-up hockey weather: Temperatures during the game, scheduled to start around 6:30 p.m. ET, are expected to dip below 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
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The weather on Saturday was so frigid, and the forecast for Sunday so chilly, that some Lightning players started dreaming of a winter wonderland for their outdoor game.
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“Last week it was 80 or something, and this week is it might be snowing at some point. So that’s crazy, but also that’s super exciting,” Lightning center Yanni Gourde said.
“We were talking about it yesterday: How cool it’ll be if snow is in Tampa and outdoor game?” forward Nick Paul said. “You tell anyone that, they wouldn’t believe you. So yeah, bundle up if you’re a fan and have some fun.”
The Stadium Series is the second outdoor game played in Florida this season, after the New York Rangers defeated the Florida Panthers in the Winter Classic at Miami’s LoanDepot Park on Jan. 2. The game-time temperature for the Classic was 63.1 degrees, making it the warmest Winter Classic and second-warmest outdoor game in NHL history behind the 2016 Stadium Series game at Coors Field in Denver (65 degrees).
Those records won’t be threatened at all on Sunday, which was a surprise to all involved.
“It’s crazy because I think last February 1st, if I remember correctly, it was like 81 degrees in Tampa. So in the past, this has been usually a cool time of year, but I don’t know if in the 13 years I’ve been in Tampa, I will feel the temperature as cold as it’s going to be tomorrow,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said after practice on Saturday.
The atypical weather was applauded by Lightning and Bruins players.
“I heard it was going to be in the 30s, so let’s hope it’s maybe even colder,” Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy said.
“I think the weather’s been perfect for this outdoor game. You don’t see that in Tampa often. It’s going to be great. It’s going to be a little bit colder, which is nice. Hopefully it’ll be good for the ice,” Tampa Bay center Anthony Cirelli said.
To ensure the ice is playable for the game in Tampa, the NHL did something it hadn’t done for an outdoor game before: place the rink inside a climate-controlled tent. The 240-foot-long, 34-foot-high steel-framed canopy is air-conditioned to maintain the ice’s integrity.
“Sunshine, rain and humidity are all big factors, and controlling these elements for as long as possible while we’re building the ice will be essential,” said Derek King, the NHL’s vice president of hockey operations.
The ice-protecting structure threw a few wrinkles into practice day at the Stadium Series. Traditionally, families and friends of the players join them for a skate after practice is over. Because the rink was shielded from the rest of the stadium — and to help maintain the ice quality — that didn’t happen in Tampa. The teams also didn’t get a chance to get acclimated to the sight lines and different dimensions of the outdoor rink, a process that takes some time.
Boston’s Morgan Geekie said it was a bit dark under the tent, “but I think once the tarp’s off it’ll be cut-and-dry weatherwise and we’ll just kind of battle” on Sunday.
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“To get out there in warmups would be cool to get a feel for what’s going on. Obviously with the tent it was a little bit different, unique experience,” Cirelli said. “But I think this will just make it cooler, getting out there in front of the fans. Get our nice warmup, and I think we’ll be good to go.”
Many players felt the ice was good under the tent, but McAvoy thought there was room for improvement.
“It’s definitely pretty patchy. It’s real soft. We’ll see what they can do between tonight and tomorrow,” he said. “Obviously, we got it after they practiced on it. I don’t know how many people have skated on it before, but yeah, it’s not great. I’m sure that they have a plan in place to make it as good as they can make it. I want it to be colder so the ice is better and there’s an outdoor game sort of ambience.”
Players and coaches were hopeful that the unexpected “hockey weather” would positively impact the atmosphere for the game. It’s not going to feel like the beach. It’s going to feel like a pond in Saskatoon.
“You need that atmosphere to be a little chilling on the breath and feel it in your lungs and whatnot,” Tampa Bay defenseman Ryan McDonagh said. “Fans too here in Tampa, we obviously get so what’s so-called spoiled with the weather at times here in the winter. So a little bit of chilly temps for a hockey game should do wonders for the crowd.”
Cooper said he’s excited for Lightning fans to experience something the players know so well.
“This game is meant to be played in cold weather. I think for 65,000 people … I know a lot of people coming from the north that already experienced this, but there be a lot of people that haven’t. And for them, I’m happy, because this is what we’ve experienced our entire lives on the frozen pond, outside, playing till dark,” he said.
“Essentially that’s what we we’re doing: Playing under the lights at night. A unique, special experience. We’ve all kind of been a part of it in our lifetime, but many people that are going to be at this game have not. And I think that’s super cool.”
