While Minnesota has waited years to host the NHL Winter Classic, the wait will continue. The NHL has announced that they will be postponing this year's Winter Classic at Target Field between the Wild and the St. Louis Blues because of the novel coronavirus.
Along with announcing the postponement of the Winter Classic, the hockey league also announced they will be postponing All-Star Weekend in Florida this season. NHL Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Content Officer Steve Mayer says that having fans in seats are paramount for these events.
“Fan participation, both in arenas and stadiums as well as in the ancillary venues and events that we stage around the Winter Classic and All-Star Weekend, is integral to the success of our signature events. Because of the uncertainty as to when we will be able to welcome our fans back to our games, we felt that the prudent decision at this time was to postpone these celebrations until 2022 when our fans should be able to enjoy and celebrate these tentpole events in-person, as they were always intended. We are also considering several new and creative events that will allow our fans to engage with our games and teams during this upcoming season.”
The league plans to open their 2021 season on January 1st. They have no announced plans on where the games will be held.
