The Chicago Blackhawks will be ringing in the New Year by taking on the Washington Capitals at Nationals Park on January 1 as part of the 2015 NHL Winter Classic. Over the past several years the Winter Classic has grown to be a tent pole event on the NHL calendar, and this year is no different judging by the ticket prices. According to Razorgator.com, Washington Capitals vs. Chicago Blackhawks tickets for the Winter Classic are the most expensive ticket for any NHL game in the United States in 2015, with an average price of $523, and a get-in price of $271.
Not only will the excitement of outdoor cold-weather hockey bring fans to Nationals Park in droves, but this also happens to be a game featuring high quality teams with marketable stars. The home fans will be pulling for perennial All Star Alex Ovechkin, who again finds himself near the top of the leaderboard of NHL goal scorers for the Caps, a team fighting for a playoff spot near the mid-point of the NHL season. The Blackhawks, winners of the Stanley Cup in 2010 and 2013, bring stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews to the nation’s capital as leaders of the Central Division and a legitimate threat to win the Western Conference.
The Capitals will try to snap a three game losing streak for Winter Classic host teams, which started with their own 3-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Heinz Field in 2011. In 2012, the NY Rangers defeated the Philadelphia Flyers at Citizens Bank Park, followed by a Toronto Maple Leafs victory over the Detroit Red Wings at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on New Year’s Day 2013 in front of an NHL-record paid attendance of 105,491 hockey diehards.
The Blackhawks hosted the Winter Classic in 2009 at Wrigley Field, coming out on the losing end to the Detroit Red Wings by a score of 6-4 in front of 40,818 freezing fans. This will be the seventh NHL Winter Classic since the first game in Buffalo in 2008, with this being the fourth such game to be played in a baseball stadium, the home of the Washington Nationals. The other three non-baseball Winter Classic venues have been football stadiums, which naturally have a much higher attendance. The intimate nature of the baseball stadium brings a unique perspective to Winter Classic attendees, and fans of the 2015 iteration will love what they see and be thrilled to be on site.
Fans traveling from Chicago can find O’Hare parking from ParkWhiz.com on their way out of town, and NHL fans from all over the country may make their way to DC to take in this spectacle. There is a reason this is one of the crowning jewels of the NHL season, and the hottest ticket south of Canada in 2015.
