The NHL Heritage Classic is returning to its roots, with the league’s announcement that its 2023 edition will return to Edmonton, Alberta. The Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers will play each other at Commonwealth Stadium on October 29, with tickets already on sale.
Commonwealth Stadium was the site of the first-ever NHL Regular Season outdoor game, the 2003 Heritage Classic. In that contest, the Montreal Canadiens took a 4-3 victory over the Edmonton Oilers in front of more than 57,000 fans. Since that time, the league has staged 37 outdoor contests throughout North America, bringing more than 1.8 million fans (an average of just shy of 53,000 per game) to watch hockey out in the elements.
“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-Oilers outdoor matchup will mark the seventh NHL Heritage Classic™, which includes the inaugural game in Edmonton (2003), as well as games in Calgary (2011), Vancouver (2014), Winnipeg (2016), Regina (2019) and Hamilton (2022). It will be the 38th regular-season outdoor contest, and first of four such games scheduled for the 2023-24 NHL season, which includes the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic® (Jan. 1, Vegas at Seattle) and 2024 Navy Federal Credit Union Stadium Series™ (Feb. 17, Philadelphia at New Jersey; Feb. 18, NY Rangers at NY Islanders). A complete history of NHL regular-season outdoor games can be found here.
The Flames and Oilers organizations have faced off in 263 regular-season games since the 1979-80 season, with the Flames holding a 33-point edge over the Oilers (CGY/AFM: 131-107-25-287; EDM: 113-122-28-254). The Oilers have won five of six Stanley Cup® Playoffs series over the Flames, including the most recent “Battle of Alberta,” which took place during the Second Round of the 2022 Stanley Cup® Playoffs.
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