Bolts alumni Hall, Malone look back on outdoor games ahead of Stadium Series

Adam Hall remembers the feeling like it was yesterday.

The date was Oct. 6, 2001.

Hall, then a college hockey player at Michigan State University, was donned in full gear with added eye black on his face as he hiked with his teammates toward a game that would change hockey forever.

Hall wasn’t at his team’s usual arena. Rather, he was gearing up for the game sometimes referred to as the ‘Cold War’ at the university’s football stadium—the first regular season outdoor hockey game held in North America.

The NHL followed suit with their first outdoor regular season game, the 2003 Heritage Classic in Canada, and those outdoor games haven’t stopped since.

The league’s next scheduled visit is to none other than Tampa, Florida—the same city in which Hall played four NHL seasons—on Feb. 1 to host the 2026 Navy Federal Credit Union Stadium Series.

The experience is one-of-a-kind, and it still stands out among Hall’s hockey memories.

“It's like this distant roar when you're inside the tunnel, and then as you walk out of that tunnel, the roar surrounds you, gets louder and louder and it just opens up all around you. I mean, it’s four times the amount of fans, and I still get chills thinking about seeing the distant fans in the far endzone in the tunnel and as you walk out having it open up around you.”

That game was an NCAA rivalry matchup between Michigan State and Michigan on a day nearly 75,000 fans sold out the stadium. Hall opened the scoring 3:25 into the game with a power-play goal and then had the primary assist on the game-tying goal in the final minute of what ended as a 3-3 tie between the in-state rivals.

It wasn’t his only outdoor game, as he also played for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL’s first-ever Winter Classic in 2008. The historic event saw the Penguins defeat the Buffalo Sabres 2-1 in a shootout on a blustery, snow-filled day in New York.

“I don't think you could have scripted a better scene where it was just this continuous kind of Christmas snow,” he said. “It was just heavy nonstop snow. I remember the ice and trying to stickhandle through piles of snow, and to try to make a pass across the ice you'd almost have to take a slapshot and fire it as hard as you could.”

Ryan Malone: ’It’s going to be a big party’

Hall, who played for Tampa Bay from 2008 to 2013, currently serves as an analyst for Lightning television broadcasts. Fans also often see Ryan Malone, the six-year Bolt who played alongside Hall in Tampa Bay as well as for Pittsburgh at the 2008 Winter Classic.

“I took it as just playing hockey outside, not necessarily an NHL game,” Malone said of the game. “We warmed up differently with some hot chocolate, and we were just kicking the soccer ball, having fun, and really just going out to enjoy the game and soak it all in. It was just an incredible experience.”

He said the team particularly enjoyed the heated benches during the cold game and embraced the moment.

“I know walking out to that packed stadium with the noise and everything, you can see why the football guys get fired up pretty easily. It’s just really cool to be part of it. It’s great to see them have this continued success and move it down south as well to grow the game all over.”

Now the former Tampa Bay Lightning forwards will get to see outdoor hockey visit Tampa when the Lightning host the Bruins one week from today at Raymond James Stadium.

Hall said the Stadium Series game will stand out not just in Tampa but around the hockey world, calling it a “once in a lifetime” game.

“This never happens. Outdoor games happen each year around the league or up north, but for Tampa fans, for hockey fans in general, to me this is a chance to see an event with the atmosphere, the experience. Everybody's in a great mood, and the energy surrounding this event is magnified 100-fold over just a regular game. This is not just an NHL game between a couple of teams. This is an event that people in this region never get to see, never get to experience. It’s history in the making.”

Malone knows Tampa Bay fans will enjoy that experience.

“I assume it’s going to be a big party,” he said.

“It should be perfect weather, and it should just be a great event. To get to see hockey on that field and the history they have, especially the last few years of just being this championship town and city, I think it's pretty cool to embrace the sports and put them together. But overall, I think the Lightning fans there will be loud and proud and have a good time enjoying the game we all love.”