ANN ARBOR – Two Original Six rivals, driving snow and a shootout. the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings, did not fail to disappoint in the 2014 Winter Classic.
The six annual Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic took place at the fabled “Big House” in front of a record crowd of 105,591.
Coming into the game, the Red Wings sat in fourth place in the Atlantic Division, and sixth in the Eastern Conference.
The Red Wings, who were led by veteran forwards Daniel Alfredsson and Pavel Datsyuk, were considered as one of the strongest teams in the Eastern Conference.
The Maple Leafs, seventh in the East, and fifth in the Atlantic, were led by winger Phil Kessel, and captain Dion Phaneuf, who recently signed a seven-year contract extension.
Toronto featured one of the best goalie duos in the NHL with Jonathan Bernier an James Reimer.
The 2014 Winter Classic shaped up to truly be a classic. as the game was action packed, as each team played tremendously hard. The game’s last moments were heart-wrenching, as both the Leafs and Wings had breakaway chances within the last minute.
The game would end up tied 2-2 after regulation, and after five minutes of overtime.
After being tied 1-1 in the shootout, Tyler Bozak ripped a shot past Jimmy Howard to seal the win, and put the finishing touch on a 3-2 win on and a truly classic game.