NHL Winter Classic story debunked by BMS officials

BRISTOL — Sorry hockey fans, there aren't current plans for the 2027 NHL Winter Classic to come to Bristol Motor Speedway according to track officials. However, there is still the possibility of the event coming to BMS sometime in the future. BMS and Speedway Motorsports officials confirmed a story on internet sites about a Jan. 2, 2027 game at the "Last Great Colosseum" was not true. What is true is that NHL officials were among those who attended the MLB Speedway Classic between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds in August. The internet report about the hockey game mentioned the Nashville Predators and Carolina Hurricanes as participants. "BMS is always interested in unique large-scale events," BMS President Jerry Caldwell said. "The reports of a scheduled event with NHL at BMS are inaccurate. We do look forward to welcoming fans back to the 'Last Great Colosseum' for the Food City 500 on Sunday, April 12." A graphic circulated on Reddit posted with the story. The latest post on the NHL Experiences page show the 2027 game at a site to be determined. Alex Daugherty, the Preds beat writer for the Tennessean, posted on "X" that he was also told by a reliable source the report of a 2027 game at BMS was not true. Looking at the future, the game makes sense on many levels. Bristol is basically halfway between Raleigh and Nashville. The Lenovo Center, home of the Hurricanes, is 262 miles away from BMS. It's 287 miles from BMS to Bridgestone Arena, home to the Predators. Speedway Motorsports and other sports entities, including the University of Tennessee, have talked about using their facilities for more than its primary purpose. BMS has done that with the "Battle at Bristol" football game between Tennessee and Virginia Tech which set an NCAA record 156,990 attendance. The MLB Speedway Classic set the Major League regular-season attendance record of 91,032 and was a sell-out for the seats available. While weather ended up a huge issue for the Speedway Classic, the NHL has had good fortune with the Winter Classic. They were able to play Friday's game between the New York Rangers and Florida Panthers in Miami with the temperature 61 degrees at puck drop. The rink was specially modified for the game with the ice sheets an inch higher than the NHL standard. The 2020 game was played at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, while other games have been at Northeastern and Midwestern locations. So while there is still a good chance of an NHL Winter Classic, WWE pay-per-view or other major events coming to BMS in the future, it's currently not on the Jan. 2027 schedule according to SMI officials.