Monday's 3-2 loss to the New York Rangers in the 2012 Winter Classic was a disappointing one for Philadelphia Flyers fans but there was some good to come out of the narrow loss, as the NHL seems to have found its signature event.
According to ESPN.com's Sports Business writer Kristi Dosh, via Twitter, the ratings for the annual outdoor event, held this year at Citizen Bank Park in Philadelphia, PA, "beat out ABC, CBS and FOX in 18-49 category." Dosh also said ticket sales for the event have seen huge growth.
"Ticket re-seller StubHub has seen overall ticket sales for the Winter Classic trump not only the all-star game but also quite a few Stanley Cup games.
"The Winter Classic also out-sold Game 1 of the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals, and the 2008 Winter Classic was the second-best selling game of the regular season."
See SBNation Philly's StoryStream for complete Winter Classic coverage. You can visit BroadStreetHockey for the Flyers perspective. For the Rangers, check out Blueshirt Banter for the Rangers perspective.