Before Game 3 between the Florida Panthers and Toronto Maple Leafs, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman held a press conference at Amerant Bank Arena. On Friday, he was asked by members of the media about several different topics surrounding the league.
He was asked about potential expansion in Atlanta, talked about the upcoming renewal of the league's CBA, officials being available to the media after controversial calls are made. and how league finances would be impacted with the trade wars going on between the UK and the US. However, he was also asked about the upcoming 2026 NHL Winter Classic.
For those who have been under a rock for months, the league announced that the Florida Panthers and New York Rangers will play in that event at loanDepot Park in Miami, home of the Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball. This move for the league is bold and off-the-wall. Next year will mark the first time in league history that two outdoor games will be held in Florida.
This Winter Classic between the Cats and Rangers will take place on January 2, 2026. A month later, the Tampa Bay Lightning will host the Boston Bruins at Raymond James Stadium, home of the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers. When asked about this, Bettman displayed a level of excitement about the event and doubled down that the league believes they are doing the right thing, regardless of the opinions from everyone in the hockey world.
""Two outdoor games in Florida. We, it's bold, it's audacious. It's an attempt to do something special for the fans in Florida who haven't had an outdoor game and some people have suggested we're crazy but I don't think we are.""Gary Bettman on 2026 Winter Classic
In all honesty, Bettman is right. While many of the hockey gatekeepers in Canada think this is a dumb idea, they should think again. The league has already had experience in having outdoor games in warm environments. The first modern outdoor game in the expansion era took place in Las Vegas in September of 1991, when the L.A. Kings took down the Rangers, 5-2, in an exhibition.
In 2014, the league gave L.A. a Stadium Series game at Dodger Stadium between the Anaheim Ducks and the Los Angeles Kings. The next year, another Stadium Series game was played between the Kings and Sharks at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, where the San Francisco 49ers play their home games.
The 2020 Winter Classic was played between the Dallas Stars and the Nashville Predators at the iconic Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas. Two years later, another Stadium Series game was played between Tampa Bay and Nashville in Nissan Stadium, home of the NFL's Tennessee Titans.
Most recently, the Carolina Hurricanes hosted the Washington Capitals in a Stadium Series game that was played at Carter-Finley Stadium, where the North Carolina State Wolfpack football team plays their home games. With that in mind, the Florida Panthers have experienced massive groth in exposure and ticket sales over the last few seasons.
Attendance has gone up. After spending decades fielding out middling attendance numbers due to having a bad team, Florida has averaged 19,059 fans per home game throughout the 2024-25 season. That's good enough to rank fifth in the league for attendance at home games. Before this season began, the team sold out its season tickets for the first time ever.
During their Cup-winning season a year ago, Florida was averaging 18,632 fans per game, ninth in the NHL. That is a far cry from where things used to be just five years ago. The sport is growing in the state of Florida as a whole. Not only is there growing interest by the attendance figures going up, but more kids are participating by playing the sport.
According to Nicholas Cotsonika of NHL.com, registration for ice hockey is up 212 percent from the years spanning 1999 to 2024. The league itself has also had eight Florida-born players for six consecutive seasons after never having more than two before that. Palm Beach County has seen the opening of several new rinks across the area.
Even the Panthers themselves opened up a new practice rink in Fort Lauderdale, called the Baptist Health Iceplex. This growth in attention and popularity around the area is something the franchise hasn't seen in almost its entire existence. So, no, the NHL is not crazy for thinking to give the Panthers a new experience by allowing them to host the Winter Classic next year.
Ever since Vincent Viola bought this franchise in 2013, improvements have been made in every aspect. The product has gotten better quickly. More people are paying attention to the team. It's time for the Panthers to have their moment in the sun. They've earned it, and this will do wonders for the sport of hockey and its growth.