from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

The outdoor games in Lake Tahoe this weekend no doubt represent the most picturesque setting for an NHL contest at least since the Cleveland Barons pulled up stakes and abandoned their building in Richfield, Ohio.

But, this year aside, I’m not quite sure what the purpose is of finding remote locations for the league’s outdoor extravaganzas.

The NHL sells these events as a return to the game’s roots, but the outdoor games truly represent winter carnivals of hockey that are celebrated by fans embracing the elements and the experience while packing one stadium after another.

When the Rangers played the Devils and Islanders within four days at Yankee Stadium in the 2014 Stadium Series, the glory wasn’t that they were skating on an outdoor pond, but that more than 50,000 fans poured into the ballpark for each game. It was a celebration by and of the fans. That just isn’t possible in these remote and picturesque settings.

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