Each season, the NHL hosts multiple outdoor games, including the Winter Classic, Heritage Classic, and the Stadium Series. The Winter Classic and Stadium Series traditionally take place in the United States, while the Heritage Classic traditionally takes place in Canada.
This season, the NHL will continue the tradition of hosting these special games. The NHL Winter Classic will be a game to watch this winter. Wondering who is playing and when and how to watch? All the information you'll need is here.
2024 Winter Classic date, location, teams, and more
The 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic will take place at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Washington. The stadium is the home of MLB's Seattle Mariners. Keeping in line with the traditional New Year's Day event, the big match-up will be on Monday, Jan. 1, 2024, at 12:00 p.m. PST. The Winter Classic always takes place on New Year's Day unless it falls on a Sunday, like in 2023.
The reigning Stanley Cup champions, the Vegas Golden Knights, will play the Seattle Kraken in the 2024 Winter Classic. The Kraken will be the home team. The Winter Classic will air exclusively on TNT. Information on how to purchase tickets to the game can be found here.
The Golden Knights are the second-newest NHL franchise, while the Kraken are the newest franchise. The Golden Knights joined the league in 2017, while the Kraken joined the league in 2021.
In 2022-23, the Golden Knights won the Pacific Division. The team has made the Stanley Cup playoffs five out of six seasons of existence. 2023 marked the first time the organization won the Stanley Cup.
The Kraken were fourth in the Pacific Division last season. They have only played two NHL seasons and already have a playoff appearance to their name. They earned a Western Conference wild-card spot in 2022-23 and made it to the second round before being eliminated.
There are plenty of exciting players to watch in this game. Kraken center Matty Beniers won the Calder Memorial Trophy for the best rookie in 2022-23. Kraken winger Jared McCann scored 40 goals last season. Golden Knights center Jack Eichel was just ranked as No. 20 on NHL Network's list of the top 50 NHL players. Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo was ranked No. 37.
In addition to New Year's Day, the Kraken and Golden Knights face off three more times this season, including Oct. 10, 2023, and March 21, 2024, in Vegas, and March 12, 2024, in Seattle.