Mother Nature threatening to spoil Winter Classic party

By Steve Keating

The rink has been built and the stage is set for a mouth-watering outdoor showdown between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals at a sold-out Heinz Field on Saturday.

The forecast is for rain and unseasonable temperatures as high as 52 degrees Fahrenheit (11 degrees Celsius) on New Year 's Day, far from the ideal conditions for an outdoor ice hockey game featuring the games two biggest names -- Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and Washington's Alexander Ovechkin.

While weather has been an issue at every Classic never before has the forecast been so ominous.

"The elements are part of the story, they have always been part of the story," John Collins, the NHL's chief operating officer, told reporters after an afternoon skate on the temporary rink.

"It's just part of the story of the game, part of what makes it great. Weather is part of the game's DNA. It's an outdoor game and like the World Series weather gets involved in it.

"We're planning to play at 1 o'clock (ET) and we've got maximum flexibility to do what needs to be done to get that game in on Saturday.

"If for some reason the ice was completely unplayable we have other options on Sunday but we're going into this with the idea we are going to play at 1 o'clock.

"We fully expect to get the game in on Saturday."

SPECIAL GAME

While Collins is confident in having maximum flexibility, there is not much wiggle room for the NHL.

The showcase must be played no later than Sunday with the Pittsburgh Steelers taking back ownership of the stadium as they prepare of the NFL postseason.

Collins was unwilling to go into detail about the NHL's contingency plans, repeating that he was confident the game would go as scheduled.

If conditions do not allow the game to go off as scheduled the opening faceoff could be pushed back as late as 8pm.

Player safety also remains a prime concern while rescheduling the contest would create a logistical nightmare for fans, sponsors and broadcasters.

Over 68,000 are expected to pack Heinz Field for the game and with nearly half the tickets sold to fans outside of Pittsburgh many could find themselves scrambling to change plans if there are major delays.

"Weather is the biggest factor and weather can change and hopefully it is going to change. I can't see that we wouldn't be able to get this game in."

The NHL has much invested in the Winter Classic, which has become the league's signature event.

The game has been heavily promoted and become an instant New Year's Day tradition bringing the NHL unprecedented exposure.

"We treat this game special," said Collins. "While it is just one regular season game out of 1,230, we treat it like it is the Super Bowl or the World Series or the Daytona 500.

"We do that because we think it is just a great day to celebrate hockey."

(Editing by Peter Rutherford)