The 2024 NHL Stadium Series was a series of two regular season hockey games that were played outdoors at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Feb. 17-18. This was the first time since 2016 that they scheduled two games for the series instead of one.
On Feb. 17, the Philadelphia Flyers faced the New Jersey Devils, and on the Feb. 18, the New York Rangers played the New York Islanders. A crowd of 70,328 people attended the Devils-Flyers game, and 79,690 fans attended the Rangers-Islanders game, which is the third-largest crowd in NHL history. The league reopened lower-bowl seating for Sunday’s game because it was blocked off for the pregame Jonas Brothers concert the day before.
The Stadium Series is one of the regular season outdoor games that is played in the National Hockey League. The Stadium Series was first played on Jan. 25, 2014. This event is different from the NHL Winter Classic, which is usually played on or around New Years Day, and the NHL Heritage Game, which is played exclusively in Canada. Out of the seven games played in the NHL Heritage Game, five of the games have been exclusively Canadian teams.
The Stadium Series is held in a football or baseball stadium in the United States. Some of the stadiums that have been used in the past include New York’s Yankee Stadium in 2014, Levi’s Stadium in San Francisco 49ers in 2015, Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia in 2019, and Nissan Stadium in Nashville in 2022.
The uniforms worn in the Stadium Series differ from regular game jerseys. These jerseys often feature enlarged logos, letters, and numbers. The main reason for the difference in jersey is to increase visibility for spectators that sit at upper-level seating.
The first game kicked off on Feb. 17, 8 p.m. Only 32 seconds into the start of the first period, Devils captain Nico Hischier scored a goal leading the Devils 1-0. Thirteen minutes later, Tyler Toffoli, who was traded to the Devils from the Calgary Flames on June 27, scored a goal, which then ended the period 2-0.
During the second period, Flyers forward Owen Tippett scored a goal 7:43 minutes into the period, which put the Flyers on the board with the score of 2-1. Brendan Smith, a defenseman for the New Jersey Devils, scored his second goal this season ten minutes after the Flyers goal, leaving the score 3-1.
In a little over a minute, Nathan Bastian of the Devils scored, making the score 4-1 in favor of New Jersey. Owen Tippett scored another goal in the second period, this time on a power play, which ended the 2nd period with the score 4-2 New Jersey.
The final period of the game began with Nico Hischier scoring a goal, making the game 5-2. Nick Seeler of the Philadelphia Flyers scored nine minutes into the game which left the game 5-3. The final goal of the game was scored on an empty net by the Devils’ Nathan Bastian. The final score for the game was 6-3, with the win going to the home team, the New Jersey Devils.
The second game began at 3 p.m. on Feb. 18. The game started off with Erik Gustafsson of the New York Rangers scoring only a minute and a half into the game. Brock Nelson of the New York Islanders scored only three minutes later, which tied the game 1-1. The Islanders took control of the puck when Bo Horvat scored and only 20 seconds later, Mathew Barzal, which ended the period 1-3, the Islanders with a two-point lead.
Only a minute into the second period into the second period, Anders Lee of the New York Islanders scored in a Power Play, leaving the score 1-4. Four minutes later, Vincent Trocheck scored a goal during a Power Play. 13 minutes later, Trocheck scored again, leaving the score 3-4, still in favor of the New York Rangers.
The third period began with Alexander Romanov of the Islanders scoring a goal a little under 2 minutes into the period, which gave the Islanders a two-point lead, with the score of 5-3. Chris Kreider of the Rangers scored a Power Play goal just shy of 16 minutes into the period, making the score 4-5. The final goal of the period was scored at 18:31 by Mika Zibanejad, a center for the New York Rangers, during the Ranger’s Power Play, which left the game tied at 5-5.
Overtime did not last long due to Artemi Panarin of the New York Rangers scoring a goal only 10 seconds into the overtime, which ended the game 6-5, and gave the Rangers their 7th consecutive win.
The Rangers comeback is noted as one of the best comebacks in Stadium Series history, with their fierce determination to win shining through the third period and in the short overtime.
The 2024 Stadium Series was filled with action packed games that had viewers on the edge of their seats. Overall, both games were filled with exciting goals and nail-biting periods.
