Canadiens to visit Bruins in 2016 Winter Classic

Two years after the massive success at Michigan Stadium, the Montreal Canadiens will become the second Canadian NHL team to take part in a Winter Classic.

The Canadiens will visit the Boston Bruins at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., on New Year's Day 2016, taking hockey's oldest rivalry outside.

"It was special in 2010 just to be there with the history behind Fenway Park and all that," Bruins centre Patrice Bergeron said. "But playing Montreal outside at Foxborough, we'll see if it beats it, but it's definitely going to be something great."

The Toronto Maple Leafs were the first Canadian team to crack the Winter Classic. The success of the 2014 game at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor between the Leafs and Detroit Red Wings, especially in U.S. TV ratings, helped set the stage for the Habs' involvement.

This is the Bruins' second Winter Classic after hosting the Philadelphia Flyers at Fenway in 2010. Boston is the first market to host multiple Winter Classic events, though Chicago has had one of those and a Stadium Series game.

"We know it's a great sports town, it's a great hockey town," commissioner Gary Bettman said. "The Bruins have a wonderful organization. And the opportunity to go back with this rivalry and play in a large stadium like Gillette, we think it's going to be a spectacular day."

Gillette Stadium, home of the NFL's New England Patriots, seats 68,756. A sellout wouldn't rival the Big House at Michigan, but it would be a step up from baseball stadiums that have hosted the game previously.

On Saturday, Bettman also announced two Stadium Series games for next season: the Minnesota Wild hosting the Chicago Blackhawks at TCF Bank Field in Minneapolis on Feb. 21 and the Colorado Avalanche hosting the Red Wings at Coors Field in Denver on Feb. 27.

Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher is looking forward to showcasing the "State of Hockey" at the University of Minnesota's football stadium.

"Our owner, Craig Leopold, has been adamantly pursuing this game and (is) very passionate about it," Fletcher said. "I think down the road we'd even like to get a Winter Classic as our team continues to improve and we make strides. To land a Stadium Series game is a great accomplishment and it's going to be a lot of fun."

The Blackhawks will be appearing in their league-high fourth outdoor game. They were most recently visitors against the Washington Capitals in the 2015 Winter Classic.

"I don't think it gets old at all," Chicago winger Patrick Kane said. "We kind of view ourselves and pride ourselves on being one of the faces of the league, as far as team-wise."

Toronto will reportedly host the 2017 Winter Classic and maybe even the all-star game, too, to celebrate the Leafs' 100-year anniversary. Bettman said the league wanted to honour that milestone and the NHL's 100th anniversary appropriately and was in discussions with the Leafs about future plans.

Bettman also said the Senators have expressed interest in hosting an outdoor game in Ottawa. TD Place, home of the Redblacks, has a capacity of just 24,000, which is the same issue with Montreal's Percival Molson Memorial Stadium.

"The problem is the stadium situation," Bettman said of Montreal. "Unless that changes dramatically or we figure out a way to pop up a stadium that would work, there's an indoor stadium and I think the football stadium only seats about 20,000 people, so it's not the same experience."