The seventh Heritage Classic will return to Commonwealth Stadium for the 20th anniversary of the first NHL regular-season outdoor game. The Montreal Canadiens defeated the Oilers 4-3 in the 2003 NHL Heritage Classic in front of 57,167 fans at the home of the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League.
"To play an outdoor game in Edmonton, at Commonwealth, to play Calgary on the 20th anniversary of the last one, super special," Oilers captain Connor McDavid said.
Since that game, there have been 34 other regular-season outdoor games attended by 1,755,438 fans.
The next one will see the Pittsburgh Penguins face the Boston Bruins in the 2023 Discover NHL Winter Classic at Fenway Park in Boston on Monday (2 p.m. ET; TNT, SN, TVAS). The Carolina Hurricanes will also host the Washington Capitals in the Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Feb. 18.
The Buffalo Sabres defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-2 in the 2022 NHL Heritage Classic at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, Ontario, on March 13, 2022.
The 2023 edition will mark the first time the Oilers and Flames take the "Battle of Alberta" outdoors. The game will feature some of the NHL's top players, including centers Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl of Edmonton, and centers Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri of Calgary.
"We're proud to be partnering with the NHL for a sixth year on the Tim Hortons NHL Classic," said Hope Bagozzi, Chief Marketing Officer, Tim Hortons. "We're excited that the 2023 Tim Hortons NHL Classic will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the first NHL outdoor game -- back in Edmonton where that first outdoor game was staged -- and with what's sure to be a thrilling Battle of Alberta matchup."
The Flames are 1-0-1 in regular-season outdoor games. They defeated the Canadiens 4-0 in the 2011 Heritage Classic at McMahon Stadium in Calgary before more than 41,000 fans. Calgary was defeated by the Winnipeg Jets 2-1 in overtime in the 2019 Heritage Classic at Mosaic Stadium in Regina, Saskatoon, before 33,518 fans.
"It'll be fun. I was part of one against Winnipeg and played one back in Sweden, too," Flames forward Elias Lindholm said. "It's always fun to go back to your roots and be outdoors and stuff like that. It's always nice when we play Edmonton as well. We're excited."
The Oilers are 2-0-0 in Heritage Classics, winning the inaugural event and defeating the Jets 3-0 in 2016 at Investors Group Field in Winnipeg with 32,240 fans in attendance.
The Flames and Oilers have faced each other in 262 NHL regular-season games since 1979-80, when the team relocated from Atlanta. Calgary (131-106-6 with 19 ties) holds a 287-252 edge in points over Edmonton (112-122-9 with 19 ties).
The two teams have met six times in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including in the second round in 2022. Edmonton won that series in five games.
