While Gato didn't play outdoor Ice Hockey, he did play a lot of street hockey growing up on the streets in Tijuana. So while the weather conditions might no match sunny Tijuana, playing outside in the elements is not exactly foreign to my player. Playing in a giant stadium is surely different enough though that I wouldn't say it'd replicate the feelings of playing out on the streets with makeshift nets setup from boxes and what not. Now do I think the winter classic is gimicky? Absolutely not! Ice Skating didn't originate inside an arena, so getting back to the elements of an outdoor rink is where the game belongs. Honestly it's more surprising we haven't seen a team try to adopt the outdoor rink as their own at this point. Think of the home field advantage you'd get playing in an arena with a retractable roof for when the winter season comes! Picking an opponent is the easy part here, let's go with a team from a warm climate who may not be up to the elements like the Tampa Bay Barracuda.

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