NHL Stadium Series Could Include A 90-Minute Pre-Game Concert

It sounds like the NHL is looking to give fans some bang for their buck at the upcoming Stadium Series weekend at MetLife Stadium as the league revealed a 90-minute pregame concert is in the works.

This year's edition of the Stadium Series is slated for February 17 and 18. It'll feature two games both played at MetLife Stadium with the Flyers and Devils playing on Saturday, while the Rangers and Islanders will faceoff on Sunday.

As is the case with any NHL outdoor game — and these two will mark the 40th and 41st times the league has played outdoors if you can believe that — there are always plenty of special events. However, this iteration may have something no previous outdoor game has had: a 90-minute pre-game concert.

The league held an event at the stadium with team representatives on hand. NHL chief content officer Steve Mayer said that the league is trying to make both days of the event unique.

"We're challenging our events team to make it different from Saturday to Sunday so when a fan walks in, they're looking at a different experience from the day before," he said, per NHL.com. "We looked at it as a cool challenge. This is a building with the Jets and Giants where they can and have changed the whole stadium from a Jets stadium to a Giants stadium, or a Giants stadium to a Jets stadium, so we can do it too."

One of the ideas is a full-length concert with a headlining act.

Representatives from all 4 teams involved in this season's Stadium Series were on hand to officially announce the event. (Photo by Jared Silber/NHLI via Getty Images)

Stadium Series Could Be One Heck Of A Double Feature

Musical acts are no stranger to NHL outdoor games, but a full concert would be a first.

"We've never done a 90-minute show pregame with a major act," Mayer said. "It's trending that it would be Saturday before the game. Anybody with a ticket would not only get a chance to see the game but get a concert on top of that. That's something extremely unique and something we've never done before."

There were no details on who the league was hoping to get for a pre-game show. If it was someone good, that's a heck of a double feature: a full-length concert and some outdoor puck.

It'll be interesting to see how that's supposed to work. It's not a bad idea to get people out of the parking lot and into the stadium where beers are significantly more expensive. However, does that mean that Flyers-Devils tickets could end up being a little more expensive than Rangers-Islanders?

We'll find out soon enough if the NHL goes through with this plan.

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