"There wasn't a seat available. The fan base and the community did a really good job of supporting this," Aaron Ward (2001-06; 2009-10) followed with. "Everybody was here. We couldn't have pulled it off better."
In fact, if you ask Ward, the NHL now has something new to add to their arsenal for every outdoor game moving forward.
"[The league] is learning from every game they do. I think one of the things that they need to have at all games now is the marching band. It's the little details that make it great, right? You have this big outdoor facility. It's all great with a hockey rink, but then you have the entertainment between," the former defenseman furthered. "Think about the rah-rah of a college football game. They brought that into an NHL outdoor game. I sat in the stands and everybody around me loved it. They brought cheerleaders, they had the batons. It was an event, it wasn't just a hockey game."
And while most will admit that the spectacle's overall success was a bit beyond expectations, Steven Halko (1997-2003) was more impressed than surprised.
"It's a testament to the people in the area and the organization," Halko offered. "It's humbling that it's been 25 years [for the franchise]. It's almost unbelievable. But this is what happens when you put good people in an organization and build from the ground up. That's what I really think that we have."
