2026 Heritage Classic ‘full-circle moment’ for hockey fans

WINNIPEG -- Fans from near and far gathered on the grounds surrounding Princess Auto Stadium ahead of the 2026 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic on Sunday to celebrate the game in all of its outdoor hockey glory.

Amid conversations overheard in French and English, and among the several thousand fans adorned in Montreal Canadiens and Winnipeg Jets attire ahead of the outdoor game here (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, SN, TNT, truTV, HBO MAX), one young fan enjoying the festivities at the 2026 Scotiabank NHL PreGame was Winnipeg native Kelsey Rathwell. Smiling ear-to-ear and bouncing with energy, Rathwell shared a “full-circle moment” for her and her father on a sunny and mild afternoon on the Canadian prairies.

“It's so awesome because my dad, I begged him to take me to the first Heritage Classic (in Winnipeg) in 2016, but he said no because I was really young,” Rathwell said. “And now it's funny that I get to buy him a ticket to this Heritage Classic and we get to go together.

“And then I just got the new jersey with the new (Heritage Classic) patch on it, and he has his jersey with the old (2016) patch on it.”

Standing next to Kelsey was her father, Pat. He was clearly proud while discussing the Father’s Day gift from his daughter.

“You trying to make me cry? It does mean a lot to me,” he said, laughing. “My daughters are everything to me, and to have the ability to spend a special day like this with her is pretty cool. I mean, these are lifetime moments, really, and it's just great. I mean, I taught them to be sports fans -- I guess it's my fault -- but to share my passion with her and her taking such a liking to it, it’s pretty cool.

“The whole setup itself, and just the way they've organized everything from the concessions, they've got all kinds of giveaways. They’re amazing. They’re giving away gift cards, they’ve got people giving away prizes. You're entering draws all the time. It's crazy how much stuff is here.”

As Jets fans, the Rathwells noticed the large turnout of Canadiens fans.

“A lot of red, which is OK, though,” Pat said. “I'm OK with that. I mean, this is hockey, right? We're a hockey city, so this is good. I mean, the first time the Jets were back (returned from Atlanta in October 2011), they played the Habs, so why not have them back this time, right?”

Dressed in Canadiens red, blue, and white, and witnessing their first outdoor game were the Koops family, who drove eight hours north from their home in Sioux Center, Iowa.

“We're big Montreal fans,” said Jeff Koops, smiling alongside his wife Christine and three adult children Nicole, Derek and Alex. “It’s something different. This is all pretty cool. … Having the Stanley Cup here, that was pretty awesome. We were pretty excited about that.

“When we saw when they announced the game, (we were like), ‘Hey, Montreal's playing in Winnipeg,’ it’s like, ‘We're going, for sure.’ I grew up (in Southern Ontario) playing outdoor hockey on the pond, so I always think it's cool, the outdoor games. The (NHL) players always talk about how it's like bringing them back to their childhood. (My children) skated outside every once in a while, (but) hardly ever (in Iowa). I always played outside, so it's something cool about being outside.”