"The House that Ruth Built" may be used to stage a hockey event.
Newsday reported on Wednesday that the NHL is looking
at the possibility of having the New York Rangers play the
New York Islanders in a regular season game at Yankee Stadium.
"A request has been made to use the stadium for an NHL game in
the 2006-2007 season," Yankees spokesman Rick Cerrone confirmed
to Newsday. "The matter is under discussion."
According to the newspaper, league officials met with both teams
as well as city officials and NBC to discuss the feasibility of
the event, which would tentatively take place on Jan. 1,
2007.
One NHL team executive informed the newspaper that dates in
December also had been presented. NBC is said to be seeking New
Year's Day.
"Everybody likes the idea," a source told Newsday. "But there
are some obstacles. The question is whether the stadium will be
usable at that time of year for that purpose."
However, there were some indications Thursday that the proposal may be on thin ice.
The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J., quoted an unnamed NHL official as saying discussions about an outdoor game have been tabled.
"This has been dead for a long time," the official, who asked not to be identified, told the Star-Ledger.
One of the obstacles could be the plumbing and water pipes,
which would require maintenance to create and maintain the ice
surface.
The NHL staged its only outdoor game on Nov. 22, 2003, when
the Edmonton Oilers played the Montreal Canadiens at Edmonton's
Commonwealth Stadium. More than 56,000 fans were in attendance
to watch Wayne Gretzky suit up in the Oilers-Canadiens alumni
game. The Canadiens posted a 4-3 victory over Edmonton in the
regular-season matchup.
SportsTicker contributed to this report.