CHICAGO, IL – The evolving details of the Winter Classic continue as the NHL’s mid-season tentpole event arrives at Wrigley Field. From the first US outdoor game in 2008 when the Sabres hosted the Penguins at Rich Stadium in Buffalo, there is more polish and branding than ever before.
Themes evoking the confines of the historic ballpark and the diverse city it calls home are ever-present. Ivy, bridges and rivers are represented throughout the stage surrounding the ice rink while blending in some of the classic elements of the manual scoreboard and flags atop the stadium’s upper rim are prominent.
On the ice, in addition to the classically-designed uniforms inspired by team history and in one case, early renditions never worn in game play, the goaltenders will sport new equipment.
Blackhawks goaltenders are aligned with a brown theme, noted for the color worn by all goaltenders until the early 1980s when New York Islanders Hall of Fame goaltender Billy Smith was one of the first to sport orange and blue pads.
For Tuesday’s game, Arvid Soderblom, who will likely be the back-up for Chicago sports a nearly all-brown kit with black trim on the edges to accent the piece. It evokes a truly classic look synonymous with the original gear worn by all goaltenders for nearly 90 years.
His mask reminds us not long ago the fiberglass, molded masks pressed up against the face which merely prevented cuts and not concussions. My best guess is that it is most reminiscent of Hall of Fame Chicago goalie Tony Esposito, who assed a few years ago.
The likely starter for the Blackhawks will be Petr Mrazek who chose a little more flash in his predominantly brown gear with red on the outer edges of the pads with white and black stripes which match the team socks.
Accents include the crossed tomahawks at the top of the leg pads with black and red on the shin straps and outer edges of the gloves. His mask sports the primary logo of the team jerseys for the game, sock stripes on the outer edges of the mask and a crossed tomahawks logo on the chin.
The gear for the opposing team’s goaltenders should be unveiled at the team skate later today. The visiting team’s gear often takes on lesser prominence as to not overshadow the home team’s designs, but we could be surprised. More later after the practices.
The Winter Classic continues to be a full-blown palate of new things and classic-looking designs through the event.
Dennis Morrell has developed a deeply rooted passion for our game over many decades as a goaltender, writer, photographer, goalie coach, and active Level 3 USA Hockey-certified, on-ice official with over 2,000 games with the whistle. His passion for the game began in the early 70s upon his first glance at players battling for the puck at Clayton’s Shaw Park.
And yes, the ice is perfect.
He has been fortunate to journalistically cover 2 NHL Entry Drafts, 5 NHL All-Star Games, 8 NHL Outdoor Games in two countries and 25 games played in the context of 10 Stanley Cup Final series, witnessing the oldest trophy in sports lifted by the champion 4 times, including when his beloved hometown team, the St. Louis Blues, won their first chalice in 2019.
He has witnessed over 1,000 major and minor professional games in over 250 different arenas. He can be reached at dennis.morrell@prohockeynews.com and you can follow him on Twitter at DMMORRELL.