Pennsylvania's NHL clubs are reportedly working on a home-and-home series of outdoor games that would likely take place over the next three years.
The Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers are finalizing an agreement to play a game at Pittsburgh's Heinz Field in 2017, followed by another outdoor contest in Philadelphia that could come two years later, Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
A previously discussed plan for a game at Penn State's Beaver Stadium is not expected to be part of the agreement, as ESPN's Scott Burnside explains:
The two state rivals have been talking for months about a plan for an outdoor game or series of outdoor games. There was discussion about playing an outdoor game at Penn State, but it’s believed financial demands by the university soured the teams on the neutral site as an option, so the two franchises have been looking at a reciprocal arrangement with an outdoor game played one year in Pittsburgh and a second game in Philadelphia perhaps the next year.
The Penguins declined to offer an official comment, but an anonymous team official told Molinari that "my guess is it will happen."
The first game is expected to be a Stadium Series game rather than a Winter Classic as a New Year's Day game could pose a potential conflict with a Pittsburgh Steelers playoff game.
However, Burnside suggests the proposed 2017 game could be held as a Winter Classic if the NHL reschedules the event from the usual Jan. 1 date to Dec. 31.
The Penguins played in the first Winter Classic, held in Buffalo's Ralph Wilson Stadium, against the Buffalo Sabres in 2008. Heinz Field hosted one between the Penguins and the Washington Capitals in 2011.
The Flyers faced the Boston Bruins in a Winter Classic affair at Boston's Fenway Park in 2010, and Philadelphia's Citizens Bank Park hosted one between the Flyers and the New York Rangers in 2012.
Pittsburgh also played in a Stadium Series game against the Chicago Blackhawks at Soldier Field in 2014.
