The NHL is bringing the Winter Classic to Salt Lake City. The Utah Mammoth will host the Colorado Avalanche in 2027 at Rice-Eccles Stadium. This New Year's Eve clash marks the first outdoor professional hockey game in state history.

This mega event is set to take place on New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2026. The iconic Rice–Eccles Stadium will host the Utah Mammoth vs Colorado Avalanche encounter. The stadium is situated in Salt Lake City.

It will also be the first outdoor NHL game ever played in Utah. So that makes this clash even more special. The NHL Winter Classic is an annual outdoor NHL game held around the New Year. The league treats it as a marquee event, featuring special jerseys and attracting a large TV audience.

Gary Bettman, NHL commissioner, said the game will start in the late afternoon. It will run until evening under lights, creating a prime-time broadcast experience.

“It’ll be late afternoon, early evening, prime time in the East,” Bettman said. “Some of it will be under the lights, and we think it’ll be very cool.”

The other two out of three outdoor games on the NHL schedule for 2026-27 will take place in the Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic at Princess Auto Stadium on October 25, 2026, and the 2027 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series at AT&T Stadium on February 20, 2027, respectively.

The Utah owner, Ryan Smith, said the team plans a special New Year’s Eve concert. There will be a celebration after the game to maximize fan excitement.

“We have a lot planned,” Smith said. “Given the time of the game, we’re going to parlay that into a pretty special concert, obviously in the Delta Center that night, so people can come celebrate New Year’s with us with a ball drop and everything else, which I think that’s going to be exciting.”

During the Winter Classic weekend, fans will enjoy sporting events, concerts, and fun activities, with a special postgame concert planned.

Utah Mammoth Set to Play Their First-Ever Outdoor Game in Franchise History

The Utah Mammoth will play its first outdoor game, while the Colorado Avalanche will make its first NHL Winter Classic appearance. That makes this event a historic moment for the state of Utah. The stadium capacity is about 54,000 fans, and it is expected that the Utah Mammoth will draw its biggest crowd.

Gary Bettman praised owners Ryan Smith and Ashley Smith, saying they have built the franchise successfully and exceeded expectations in connecting the team with the community.

“Everything they’ve done, and you’ve heard me say this repeatedly, has exceeded our highest expectations,” Bettman said. “If you want to know how to write a textbook on how to start a franchise in a community from scratch, nobody is better than what Ryan and Ashley have been able to accomplish.”

The NHL Winter Classic will be the second outdoor game in the NHL schedule for the 2026–27 season. Overall, three outdoor games are planned in total.

Overall, the matchup between the Utah Mammoth and Colorado Avalanche in the NHL Winter Classic shows that the NHL wants to grow the game. The league also aims to give fans big and exciting events.

Are you excited to see the two teams going at each other in the 2027 Discover NHL Winter Classic?

Read more at NHL Fan Central!

Written by

Kapil Manghnani

Edited by

Kaamna Dwivedi