Wednesday morning view of the stadium is by NHL photographer David Sandford.
The Red Wings, Maple Leafs and tens of thousands of fans are experiencing hockey as it was played before domed arenas. The Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium began as snow fell heavily and the temperatures was 13 degrees.
Ice-clearing interrupted the scoreless first period frequently, Fox 2 Detroit sports reporter Jennifer Hammond tweets: "Marketing folks at the #WinterClassic missed a golden opportunity to sell sponsorships for the shoveling breaks - every five minutes!"
And an NHL tweet has this amusing detail:
"It's so cold sports writers are using pencils instead of pens because ink would freeze."
The league's attention-grabber definitely is old-style hockey, Terry Foster notes in The Detroit News:
The first hockey games were not played in cozy arenas. They were played in places like Great Bear Lake, the St. Lawrence River in Montreal and Chippewa Lake near the Niagara River. These places get cold, just like Detroit.
About 105,000 tickets were sold, according to the league. "If they all show up it will break the record for highest-attended hockey game," Foster writes.
Most people will show up and watch. They might not stay for the entire game. They are hockey fans and many are hardy Canadians. They are here to enjoy the roots of hockey.
Another Detroit journalist, Smita Kalokhe of WXYXZ, notes that parking near the stadium is pricey:
$60 parking across from the #BigHouse for the #WinterClassic? That's more than some tickets! #earlyrisers pic.twitter.com/eCgSDcRzBF
— Smita Kalokhe (@SmitaKalokhe) January 1, 2014
In an eye-catching social media post, the home team salutes Anthony Meyers and Matt Donofrio (below), who "show they're ready for the Classic all the way from Kuwait! They're today's Red Wings Fans of the Day."
Far-away fans Anthony Meyers and Matt Donofrio even stencil "Winter Classic 2014 on their armored vehicle's turret. (Facebook photo/Detroit Red Wings)
