From the Hawks’ official site:
In conjunction with the National Hockey League, the Chicago Blackhawks proudly announced today the team will host the defending Stanley Cup Champion Detroit Red Wings in an outdoor regular-season game, the NHL Winter Classic 2009, to be played at Wrigley Field on January 1, 2009, at 12:00 P.M. CT.
“We have said from the start we are going to do everything possible to bring the Chicago Blackhawks back to the forefront of sports for our fans and the city of Chicago. This is indeed an historic announcement for the Wirtz Corporation, the Chicago Blackhawks, for our players, fans and for Chicago,” stated Blackhawks Chairman W. Rockwell “Rocky” Wirtz.
Awesome. I think this is going to be a monumental event for the Blackhawks’ franchise and it’s going to be a whole lot of fun for all of us fans. Great job by McDonough and Wirtz who just continue to make all the right things happen for this team. This makes me even a little more excited for what already promises to be a big season.