from Gary Lawless of TSN,

“A priest, a rabbi and a magician walk into a bar … yada, yada, yada … and it was too sunny in Winnipeg,” goes no punchline ever. But there we were on Sunday waiting two hours for the sun to slide a little lower in the sky so an outdoor hockey game could be played in a football stadium before more than 33,000 in attendance.

This 2016 Heritage Classic in Winnipeg was a week-long celebration of pro hockey on the Prairies culminating with Sunday’s two-hour delayed Edmonton Oilers 3-0 win over the Winnipeg Jets.

The city, the stadium, the fans and even the weather all cooperated to give Winnipeg a successful star turn on the NHL’s stage. The Jets, however, lost their way somewhere between the dressing room and the ice after the opening period and served up a flop for the middle frame allowing three unanswered goals and giving the Oilers their fifth win in six tries this season.

Here are some moments, thoughts and quotes from a memorable week:

• The first Heritage Classic played in Edmonton in 2003 featured a puck drop temperature of -20 C. The NHL’s 19th outdoor game saw an opening faceoff temperature of 11 C in Winnipeg. The day dawned with rain and mist but cloud cover broke around noon and by game time there was such a glare at ice level the visibility conditions were deemed unsafe and the game was delayed.

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