Winter Classic returns to New York in 2018
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It's official: The 2018 NHL Winter Classic will feature the New York Rangers and Buffalo Sabres at Citi Field, home of the MLB's New York Mets on Jan. 1.
The league made the announcement yesterday along with the reveal of a temporary script logo. The full logo is likely to come later this summer, closer to the start of the 2017-18 season. Same with the uniforms.
This will mark the second Winter Classic appearance for both teams. The Sabres hosted Pittsburgh in the first-ever Winter Classic in 2008 while the Rangers visited Philadelphia in 2012.
As far as hosting duties for this game, it's a little tricky. While the game may be taking place in New York City, the Rangers will be designated the "visiting" team. That means the Sabres will play a home game almost 400 miles away from Buffalo.
The problem is a property tax break given to Madison Square Garden which would disappear should the Rangers ever play a "home" game anywhere other than MSG.
That being the case, we should expect to see the Rangers in white jerseys while the Sabres don blue. But it's worth noting that the Sabres are the only team to host a Winter Classic wearing white as they did in 2008.
Both teams have rather limited jersey histories and we've occasionally seen teams skip a true throwback in favor of something meant to mimic a retro sweater.
Can't wait to see the concept art start rolling in.
What do you think? Is this match-up a good choice for the NHL's 10th Winter Classic?