"For more than a week, there has been a 200 feet by 85 feet sheet of ice sitting at LoanDepot Park in Miami, and the National Hockey League is counting on it not melting. It's the same ice where the Florida Panthers and New York Rangers will meet on Friday in the 2026 NHL Winter Classic, the league's famed annual outdoor games."
"" Half the field is gonna be Miami Beach, lifeguard stands, umbrellas, cabanas and swimming pools, and the other side is as if a huge snowstorm has hit Miami ... We're gonna have cast members on the field. Half of them will be in parkas, the other will be in bikinis and speedos," said Steve Mayer, president of NHL events and content."
"" I think it's a pretty bold move by the league. Why not Florida? Florida is an amazing hockey market. So for us to bring the game here, I think it's pretty exciting," said King. " For us and our crew, it's just a new challenge. We've been in warmer markets before, but really nothing as south or as warm as this." said Higgins."
A 200-by-85-foot ice sheet has been installed at LoanDepot Park in Miami to host the 2026 NHL Winter Classic between the Florida Panthers and New York Rangers. League facility and hockey operations staff are managing the ice in unusually warm South Florida conditions. The stadium field will be transformed into contrasting halves: a Miami Beach scene and a snowstorm scene, complete with cast members in parkas and swimwear. Event production leaders emphasize the novelty and challenge of staging outdoor hockey in a warm market and promise interactive surprises for fans, including simulated snowfall on the icy side.
Read at Sun Sentinel
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