Blackhawks, Blues say winning will make Winter Classic even more special 

CHICAGO -- It was after the second period of the 2023 NHL Winter Classic at Fenway Park when Nick Foligno, then with the Boston Bruins, asked Jim Montgomery, then his coach, if he could have a few minutes to talk to the team.

“He asked me going off the ice if he could have the room and I said sure because he is such a classy man and great leader,” said Montgomery, now the coach of the St. Louis Blues.

The Bruins at the time were down 1-0 to the Pittsburgh Penguins and Foligno, now the Chicago Blackhawks captain, wanted to deliver a message.

“I wanted to make sure we embraced the moment,” Foligno said Monday from Wrigley Field. “I was telling them, like anything, it’s an amazing experience and this has been outstanding already, just being out there with these guys, but it matters if you win too. We’re competitors and the way to enjoy this the most is if you win the hockey game. That was the message to the group.”

Foligno’s message resonated with the Bruins, who came back on two Jake DeBrusk goals to win 2-1 on Jan. 2, 2023.

His message resonates with his current teammates.

The Blackhawks will play in the Discover NHL Winter Classic against the Blues at Wrigley Field on Tuesday (5 p.m. ET; TNT, MAX, truTV, SN, TVAS). That means they have an opportunity to create a memory to forever cherish in a season that has been mostly filled with disappointment so far.

Chicago (12-23-2) is last in the NHL with 26 points and a .351 points percentage in 37 games.

“I’m using this game as a way to springboard our group to where we’re expecting to go,” Foligno said. “It’s been a little disappointing as of late, especially because we had something going and have kind of fallen back a little bit. But this is a great opportunity to catch ourselves, enjoy the moment, come together as a group. If we come out of this on top, it might springboard our team to get going here and finding our way and getting the confidence and the city behind us. It’s a great fanbase here that we need to give a little bit more to, and what a great opportunity for them to be able to celebrate on New Year’s Eve.”

Blackhawks forward Taylor Hall was with Foligno in Boston two years ago. He assisted on DeBrusk’s game-winning goal at 17:36 of the third period at Fenway Park. He knows how much different it felt to win that game than any other regular-season game.

“Oh yeah, if you watch the replay I’m jumping up and down,” Hall said. “We were pumped because we’re playing at Fenway in front of our fans and we have this legendary season going. It would have just taken the air out of the room if we had lost that game.”

Instead, winning made them feel like they earned more than the two points available.

“That’s been the resounding message is that this is an amazing experience and yeah it’s amazing to be out there with my son and my family, but there’s still a game to play, there’s still two points up for grabs, and this is such a better experience when you win the game,” Hall said. “In Boston, we were able to take a picture at center ice after the game, come into the clubhouse and have a beer and really enjoy it just like baseball players would if they won a pennant or whatever. That’s what is special about it.”

Winning at home adds even more meaning, or in the Blackhawks case, incentive and motivation.

Foligno and Hall experienced that in Boston in 2023.

Blackhawks forward Jason Dickinson got that same feeling five years ago, when he had an assist in the Dallas Stars’ 4-2 comeback win against the Nashville Predators in front of 85,630 at Cotton Bowl Stadium in the 2020 NHL Winter Classic.

Dallas was down 2-0 in the first period.

“It was absolutely electric,” Dickinson said. “The energy in that game in Dallas was kind of indescribable. The whole game there was energy. It was just such a good game back and forth with a lot of moments where you’re getting up and the crowd was into it. To win it at home made it even more special.”

He hopes to rekindle that energetic feeling of joy Tuesday, when the Blackhawks will try to win the Winter Classic for the first time in five tries. They are 0-4-0 in the Winter Classic, including two losses at home (2009 at Wrigley Field, 2019 at Notre Dame Stadium).

“I’ve had a taste for it,” Dickinson said. “There’s just something about the home crowd, the buildup. I mean, we’re at Wrigley field, this is Chicago. We are representing this venue, this event, and St. Louis is coming along for it, if you will. It’s definitely more special that we have the opportunity to win it as the home team.”

The Blues, though, plan to spoil the party, like they did in Minnesota at the 2022 NHL Winter Classic, when they went into frigid Target Field as the visitors and came out with a 6-4 win against the Wild. They also defeated the Blackhawks at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Jan. 2, 2017.

“Obviously, you get to shut up the big crowd and any time you can do that going in as the opposing team it’s awesome,” Blues forward Jordan Kyrou said.

Kyrou set an NHL outdoor game record at Target Field with four points (two goals, two assists). Jordan Binnington made 29 saves. Montgomery was an assistant coach at the time. Current Blues assistants Steve Ott and David Alexander were also on the bench too.

Nine players from that game in Minneapolis remain on the Blues active roster.

“I remember the last time playing in it everyone got super hyped up and each goal felt like it was almost worth double,” Kyrou said.

Mostly, though, he remembers the winning feeling, because in the end, home or on the road, that’s what makes the memory.

“Winning at home is, yeah, that’s pretty special,” Montgomery said. “Silencing a lot of people is pretty special too.”