The Montreal Canadiens and Winnipeg Jets will take it outdoors when they meet in the Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg on Sunday evening.
It will be the NHL’s 46th outdoor game and 10th played in Canada.
“It’s my 11th year and I’ve never played in (an outdoor game), so I’m really excited,” Montreal defenseman Mike Matheson said. “My kids are coming, my wife, my parents. It’s going to be a lot of fun. I played in one in college. It’s such a different atmosphere and it’ll be a lot of fun.”
The Canadiens are coming in hot, having won two of three, most recently toppling the Chicago Blackhawks 4-1 on Friday.
“We want to be winning a lot more hockey games and, to do that, you have to be in a good position in the third,” Montreal forward Jake Evans said. “Play a mature game.”
The Habs played their most recent game without one of its most experienced players, captain Nick Suzuki, who will be out 2-4 weeks because of an upper-body injury.
Suzuki did not miss a game in the previous five seasons.
Evans stepped up in his absence with two goals and an assist against the Blackhawks, and Matheson added an empty-netter after missing the previous four games with a lower-body injury.
“With Nick going down, I think everyone felt like they needed to take another step in their game,” Evans said. “It wasn’t the prettiest win, I don’t think. … I think we played a smarter game and didn’t give them too much.”
The Jets will be playing their first game since three-time Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender Connor Hellebuyck.
The three-time Vezina Trophy winner (top goaltender) was traded to the New Jersey Devils on Friday in exchange for forwards Dawson Mercer and Nick Bjugstad, goalie Nico Daws, a seventh-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft, a second-round selection in 2029 and prospect Alexander Command, who was selected 12th overall in the most recent draft.
Hellebuyck had been suspended by the Jets for failing to report to training camp after requesting a trade over the summer.
“It certainly hasn’t been fun, there’s no question about it, but at the end of the day, Connor made his choice,” Winnipeg general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said on Saturday. “As an organization, we had to act accordingly, and we did.”
Hellebuyck was introduced to the New Jersey media on Saturday and the 2024-25 NHL MVP brought up Sunday’s outdoor game.
“There’s a lot I need to say, but (the Jets) have the Heritage game coming up,” Hellebuyck said. “Out of respect for them and the celebration of hockey, I’m going to postpone that. I hope they know I care about them.”
Winnipeg has lost four in a row, most recently dropping a 3-2 overtime decision against the Dallas Stars on Thursday. Jets coach Scott Arniel said the most recent performance was an improvement over their 2-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues on the front end of the two-game trip on Tuesday.
“We did a lot of better things,” Arniel said. “Just, still, some things we got to work on.”
The Jets also lost some depth on defense when Jack St. Ivany was claimed off waivers by the Washington Capitals on Saturday.