While the Centennial Classic is lovely alliteration, the name of the contest has more to do with not calling it the Heritage Classic since the matchup has an American team. Winter Classic is strictly for games in the United States, even if two of them have had Canadian teams as the visitors.
The Detroit Red Wings vs. the Toronto Maple Leafs game is seen as a rematch of the 2014 Winter Classic between the clubs. Mike Babcock, the Detroit coach in 2014, is in charge of the Toronto club in 2017.
In a delicious sense of irony, the NHL is renaming the location for the weekend as Exhibition Stadium. The old stadium with the same name on those grounds would have been a fascinating place to have an outdoor game.
The crowd should be larger than for the MLS Cup, much less the Grey Cup. There will be a higher capacity with the north stands. The seats will also be better as they will come onto the soccer pitch to around the goal line.
| Year | Date | Stadium | Away | Home | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | November 22 | Commonwealth Stadium | Montréal | Edmonton | 4–3 |
| 2011 | February 20 | McMahon Stadium | Montréal | Calgary | 0–4 |
| 2014 | January 1 | Michigan Stadium | Toronto | Detroit | 3–2 (SO) |
| 2014 | March 2 | BC Place | Ottawa | Vancouver | 4–2 |
| 2016 | January 1 | Gillette Stadium | Montréal | Boston | 5–1 |
| 2016 | October 23 | Investors Group Field | Edmonton | Winnipeg | 3-0 |
| 2017 | January 1 | BMO Field | Detroit | Toronto | TBD |
Jim Hughson and Craig Simpson will call both games: the alumni game and the Classic on Sunday. Rogers Sportsnet will have the alumni game at noon Eastern on December 31. The rebroadcast of the alumni game will air at 11:30 am on Sunday. Sportsnet has a 1-hour pregame at 2 pm from BMO Field leading up to the game at 3 pm Eastern.
NHL Network will carry the alumni game on Saturday with the Rogers Sportsnet feed. The rebroadcast airs Sunday at noon Eastern.
NBC will have no pregame and will start the coverage at 3 pm Eastern. The U.S. audience is stuck with the 4th rate announcing team of John Forslund and Brian Boucher though Pierre McGuire will be Inside the Glass. Kathryn Tappen will anchor coverage from Toronto along with Jeremy Roenick.
Given the NHL's insistence of running outdoor games on back-to-back days, we don't expect NBC's #1 crew to be in Toronto. But the Centennial Classic and the NBC audience deserve way better than this setup.
BMO Field in perspective before the 2016 Grey Cup
Montreal Canadiens 2016 Winter Classic champs
Let's list other options NBC should have considered:
- A simulcast of the Rogers Sportsnet feed. Okay, this is a long shot at best. But NBC would get a really good crew who knew the teams and the ambiance in Toronto. Rogers Sportsnet is carrying the NBC feed for the U.S.-based game the next day. Turnabout would be more than fair.
- Bring in Chris Cuthbert to call the game. Gord Miller is calling World Juniors on TSN, but Cuthbert's schedule is wide open. Detroit fans might howl since Cuthbert calls Maple Leafs games on TSN4. But Cuthbert has done tons of national games and quite honestly, calls Maple Leafs games as if TSN still had a national contract. Cuthbert and Glenn Healy would have been a nice reunion to call the game. Cuthbert and Mike Johnson would also be a cool reunion. Cuthbert and Pierre McGuire would be great; in fact, the duo worked for NBCSN in St. Louis last night.
- Combine a bit of Detroit and Toronto. Draft Ken Daniels (Red Wings TV play-by-play) and Greg Millen (Toronto TV colour analyst) to call the game. Neither team's fans could complain about splitting the call. Both people know both teams well. Daniels has worked for CBC on Hockey Night in Canada as well as NBC. Millen calls national broadcasts on a regular basis. Per the previous note, Chris Cuthbert and Mickey Redmond (Detroit TV colour analyst) would be fine.
- Give Gary Thorne as much money as he needs to come out of hockey retirement to call the game. Thorne and McGuire would have been very acceptable.
Kenny Albert will call the NFL on Fox on January 1. Miller/Cuthbert are the next best options for NBC. Forslund is awful on national telecasts and Boucher's analysis is the equivalent of a local goalie drafted to be the emergency backup. Joe Micheletti would have been a better analyst. Kevin Weekes would be better. NBC hasn't been able to have a full-time #2 play-by-play person since Dave Strader left the network. Mark Lee is better than John Forslund on a national level.
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Bryan Adams will perform during the first intermission in Toronto. Juno winners Arkells will perform before the puck drop.
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photo: NHL/Centennial Classic
I guess NBC is saying Forslund has paid his dues. I don't mind him but there are better options for sure. And ouch re: Boucher haha
Posted by: Tyler | December 29, 2016 at 11:29 AM