NHL could have outdoor game in unlikely location next season: report

The National Hockey League may be having one of the game’s best spectacles in a surprising part of the U.S. next season.

The Florida Panthers are reportedly closing in on hosting a game at LoanDepot Park, the home of Major League Baseball’s Miami Marlins.

It’d be the first time an outdoor game would be played in Florida in NHL history — understandably so.

The league did host a game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles in January 2014, and Levi’s Stadium in San Francisco hosted another the following year. The Cotton Bowl in Dallas was the home of the 2020 Winter Classic.

This year’s Winter Classic will be held on New Year’s Eve at Chicago’s Wrigley Field. It will be the second Winter Classic in the ballpark, having also hosted a game on New Year’s Day in 2009. Ohio Stadium, the home of the Ohio State Buckeyes’ football program, is also set to host a Stadium Series game in March, featuring the Columbus Blue Jackets in their first outdoor game.

Miami would be the southernmost city to host an outdoor game — there is a catch, though.

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LoanDepot Park’s roof is retractable, so there does stand the chance that the room could be enclosed.

The league has hosted 41 outdoor games, and the Panthers have yet to participate in one.

Florida is the defending Stanley Cup champion, but it did not come easily. After leading the Edmonton Oilers 3-0 in the Finals, the opposition fought all the way back to force a Game 7, but the Panthers held serve at home to raise the Cup.

After the current season, the Panthers and the Utah Hockey Club will be the only two NHL franchises to not have played a game outdoors. The Chicago Blackhawks, Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers are currently tied for the most outdoor appearances with six.

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