It wasn’t all about the outdoor hockey game in Miami. See what the fans did
The NHL Winter Classic brought a new experience to South Florida.
The main event was a night hockey game with the retractable roof open at loanDepot Park, home of theMiami Marlins. It marked the first NHL game outdoors in Florida.
But the heart of the event was outside the stadium.
Fans had their own festival before the big game between the two-time Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers and the New York Rangers.
The 2026 Enterprise NHL Winter Classic Pregame Fanfest was open to the Discover NHL Winter Classic ticket holders. Thousands of fans joined the pregame festivities — some out-of-towners but plenty of people from Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties.
South Florida fans like Carlos Raul Arana and Sean Portley, and long-time Panthers fans like Fred Guttenberg, Erik Rodriguez, and Fred and Amy Goldberg Reich and their sons, Nikolas and William, had fun at the Fanfest and posted about it on social media.
Fred Reich said: “Thirty years ago, who would have thought, this?”
He added: “It cost us a small fortune to do this, like a mortgage payment, but we had to be here.”
Panthers mascots Stanley C. Panther and Victor E. Rat, along with Billy the Marlin, were there, too.
The main stage had fan trivia contests, music and a panel discussion with “The Great One” Wayne Gretzky and New York Rangers legend Nick Fotiu.
Gretzky and the “NHL on TNT” broadcast team (Gretzky, host Liam McHugh, former Pittsburgh Penguins and Phoenix Coyotes star Paul Bissonnette, former Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canukcks star Anson Carter, and New York Rangers legend Henrik Lundqvist) were in the middle of the Fanfest, with the main stage and the stadium in the backdrop. There was also a fenced walkway from Fanfest to the Marlins ballpark with the Stanley Cup on display.
Former Florida Panthers star Ed Jovanovski, a member of the Panthers broadcast team, and Lundqvist participated in meet-and-greets.
What fans could do at the Fanfest
Here are some of the sponsor booths and tents:
CAT: Claw machine to grab a rubber zamboni, take a virtual slapshot, lockerroom photo op.
Discover: Winter Classic sunglasses (”Macho Man” Randy Savage style)
Jersey Mike’s: Custom-made slapshot video and Jersey Mike’s sunglasses
NOBULL: Limited sneaker giveaway, meet “NHL on TNT”’s Paul Bissonnette
Perry Ellis: Play air hockey, make-a-card, luxury shaded seating
Pudgy Penguin: Plaw machine to grab Pudgy Penguin Pez
Upper Deck: make a card
Skills: Slapshot, hardest shot, precision shots, accuracy, bullseye battle, compare speeds on your hockey slapshot and baseball pitch
Verizon: Special winter classic photo shoot, free slushees (apropos for a winter classic in sunny South Florida
Photos: See the fun
