TheNHL 100 Classic (branded as theScotiabank NHL 100 Classic for sponsorship reasons) was a regular season outdoorNational Hockey League (NHL) game held on December 16, 2017. The game featured theOttawa Senators playing theMontreal Canadiens atTD Place Stadium inOttawa (referred to as "Lansdowne Park" due tonaming rights conflicts with an official sponsor of the NHL). It was the first of the three scheduled outdoor regular season games in the2017–18 NHL season.
As part of the NHL's centennial and local celebrations ofCanada's sesquicentennial, the game was a rematch of one of the first two NHL games held on December 19, 1917, played between the Canadiens and the originalOttawa Senators. The Senators shut out the Canadiens, 3–0, with Ottawa goalieCraig Anderson making 28 saves.[1]
It marked the first outdoor game hosted by Ottawa, and the second that Ottawa has participated in; they previously faced theVancouver Canucks in the2014 Heritage Classic.[2] This was Montreal's fourth time appearing in an outdoor game.
The NHL 100 Classic was announced during a press conference on March 17, 2017.[3] As part of the league's centennial celebrations, the game honoured the 100th anniversary of the first games of the NHL'sinaugural season, held on December 19, 1917. Two games were played that night. In Ottawa, the originalOttawa Senators hosted theMontreal Canadiens at theOttawa Arena. The other game was played in Montreal at theMontreal Arena where theMontreal Wanderers hosted theToronto Arenas.[4] The game was also part of Ottawa's festivities for theCanadian sesquicentennial.[3] According to NHL commissionerGary Bettman: "To launch our next 100 years, we believe it is only right to bring the Canadiens and the Senators back together."[5]
Mayor of OttawaJim Watson remarked that he had spent a significant amount of time to convince the NHL to hold an outdoor game in Ottawa, noting that "at some point I think I could be accused of harassment – borderline harassment – for the calls that went back and forth between my office and the NHL and the Senators. But it all came together."[3] At one point, the game was proposed to be played at a temporary venue onParliament Hill, but the proposal was denied by theDepartment of Canadian Heritage due to logistical concerns.[3] The league also explored holding the outdoor game on November 26, 2017, on the 100th anniversary of the league's founding.[6] The league also felt that the 25,000-seatPercival Molson Memorial Stadium in Montreal was too small to host such a game.[6]
Outside in Lansdowne Park, and inside theAberdeen Pavilion, a "Pre-Game" area was set up. The area hosted theStanley Cup for pictures, and various sponsors and media set up interactive exhibits and games. The games involved various puck-shooting drills, such as into a washing machine and goal net targets. A rink was set up outdoors on Parliament Hill and teams of NHL alumni played an exhibition game.
