Logan's Blog T.O.: 2012 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic

Flyers vs. Rangers in Citizens Bank Park

As promised, I would post some pictures from the 2012 NHL Bridgestone Winter Classic in Philadelphia! The day itself was amazing filled with eager fans for both the Flyers and the Rangers. We woke up early (first stop was WaWa) and had a fun filled morning at the tailgate. The Citizens Bank Park lot was full of fans from both teams and contrary to some beliefs about Philadelphia fans- we made friends with Ranger fans parked across from us in the lot. Okay, I admit we all had some friendly banter going on!

Once we got to our seats the crowd was memorized. The crisp cool air encompassed all 46,967 fans and it even started to snow in the 2^nd period. To say the least, it was a perfect setting and crowd for the Winter Classic was on their feet. According to NHL.com Flyers coach Peter Laviolette said, "The Winter Classic is a tremendous event, and our organization is thrilled to be a part of it. To play in an atmosphere like tonight, you know, the only thing disappointing for us was the result."

In the end, the Flyers lost to the Rangers 3-2. The glimmer of hope with a penalty shot from Danny Briere was lost in the end as Lundqvist “stood on his head” yet again with some amazing play. From a special blog from Briere for NHL.com (after the game) he stated, “Coming in on Lundqvist, I had beaten him once on the blocker side, once on the glove side. He had stopped me a couple times before as well in shootouts, but I was still convinced I was going to score. I tried to surprise him with a quick little shot, unfortunately he was quicker than me. I've got to give him credit for that”.

I will always cherish these memories for the 2012 Bridgestone Winter Classic in Philadelphia. Not only do I consider Philadelphia my original hometown but I was able to spend the day with my closest friends who all grew up in Philadelphia as well. We don’t get to do these things all together normally, so seeing the joy on everyone’s faces as we took pictures, danced to the bands in the streets and watched the game together- it all added to the "once in a lifetime" memories from the event.

Enjoy the pictures below!