The Minnesota Wild were scheduled to host the 2021 Winter Classic, but the National Hockey League was forced to reschedule the event due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, the event has been rescheduled for Jan. 1, 2022 at Target Field.
Target Field, the home of Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins, will host the NHL Winter Classic, where the Wild will take on their Central Division foe, the St. Louis Blues in the annual New Year's Day classic.
NHL commissioner Garry Bettman made the announcement on Monday from Tampa Bay, prior to the start of the 2021 Stanley Cup Final between the Lightning and Montreal Canadiens.
The Wild had an impressive season 2020-21 regular season, where the team went 35-16-5 and finished third in the NHL's Pacific Division. However, Minnesota was eliminated in Round 1 of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs after losing a heartbreaking seven-game series to the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Wild had several players nominated for awards since the postseason began, including the presumed Calder Trophy — the award giving to the league’s most outstanding rookie — winner Kirill Kaprizov. Head coach Dean Evason was also a finalist for the Jack Adams Award, as the NHL's best coach from the 2020-21 regular season.
The Wild will play in its second outdoor game after defeating the Chicago Blackhawks by a score of 6-1 at TCF Bank Stadium in one of the 2016 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series games. This will, however, be the Wild’s first Winter Classic game in franchise history.
Target Field was named Sports Facility of the Year in 2011 by the Sports Business Journal. Since construction was completed, it has been home to several events, including the 2014 MLB All-Star Game, multiple music events, and even some NCAA football games.
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The 2022 NHL Winter Classic will continue the 14-year tradition of the NHL hosting outdoor games on the first day of the new year. It started back in 2008 when the Buffalo Sabres hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins outdoors at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
The last NHL Winter Classic took place on Jan. 1, 2020 when the Dallas Stars hosted the Nashville Predators at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas.