The NHL has officially announced that Florida will host two games in 2026. Unlike the 2025 Winter Elite Game, which was held at Wrigley Field on New Year's Eve, the 2026 Winter Elite Game will be held on January 2.
Then, about a month later, the Tampa Bay Lightning will face the Boston Bruins on February 1, 2026, at Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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Last week, NHLRumors.com reported that the NHL would announce the location for the 2026 Winter Classic sometime this week. As NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said on the NHL Pregame Show on TNT ahead of the 2025 Winter Classic between the Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues , which would be a little unusual.
“Next week, give or take,” Commissioner Bettman said when asked when the NHL would announce the next game. “It's going to be a little unusual. It's going to be a little more unique. Some people think we've lost it. Sense, but we're not ready to announce that yet. We'll do it soon, and it'll be good.
As NHLRumors.com writes via George Richards of Florida Hockey Now, LoanDepot Park will be transformed into a winter wonderland next season. Additionally, the Chargers will reportedly host an outdoor game; therefore, Tampa Bay could be the Panthers' opponent. Even though many people think so.
Traveling to Florida for two games is certainly unusual. The NHL does not typically hold these outdoor games in warmer climates. The last Winter Classic to be played in a warm stadium was the 2020 Winter Classic between the Dallas Stars and Nashville Predators at the Cotton Bowl. Meanwhile, the last Stadium Series game played outdoors was in San Francisco in 2014 against the Los Angeles Kings and San Jose Sharks.
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Given the sport's rise at the grassroots level in Florida, and the Chargers and Panthers' continued wins, it only makes sense that the league would ultimately choose to hold its outdoor games in Florida.
“The Stanley Cup, a string of sellouts and exponential growth in youth and high school hockey across the state show Florida is a hockey hotbed. Watching an outdoor NHL game in the Sunshine State? Never say our league isn't willing to take on a challenge,” Bay said. Commissioner Terman said in a press release.
More than 30 years ago, everyone thought the NHL was crazy to expand to Florida. The Lightning entered the NHL in the 1992-93 season, while the Panthers entered the NHL in the 1993-94 season. The two teams combined to reach the Stanley Cup Finals seven times and win four Stanley Cups. Most recently, the Panthers won the 2024 Stanley Cup, while the Lightning won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021.
Hosting these games in Florida shows the NHL is ready to do something they've never done before.
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