After holding the Winter Classic for the Florida Panthers in Miami last month, the NHL had just one more team left to host an outdoor game. The circuit becomes complete tonight when the Tampa Bay Lightning take on the Boston Bruins at Raymond James Stadium as part of its Stadium Series.
The NFL’s Buccaneers will donate their pirate ship and Gasparilla motifs to their neighbors from 5 miles down I-275. Any fears of playing a game of ice hockey in Florida have been allayed by the winter weather system that brought a freeze warning to the Sunshine State. Hooray?
The teams themselves have a better chance of melting the ice the way both Tampa Bay and Boston have heated up over the past month. The Lightning rose to the top of the Eastern Conference despite being without star Brayden Point, who injured his knee Jan. 12. Two of the NHL’s top point-scorers will square off with the Lightning’s Nikita Kucherov and the Bruins’ David Pastrnak.
Tampa has played just one outdoor game before, beating Nashville 3-2 in 2022 at the Tennessee Titans‘ stadium. Meanwhile, Boston has the second-most victories in the elements, improving to 4-1 after a 2-1 win over Pittsburgh in 2023 at Fenway Park. The Bruins‘ only outdoor loss came in 2016 via a 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Montreal at Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots.
Here’s what you need to know about tonight’s game, including start time, TV schedule and streaming information:
The Lightning vs. Bruins game will be broadcast on ESPN with Sean McDonough, Ray Ferraro, Kevin Weekes and Emily Kaplan on the call. Streaming options for the game include the ESPN app (with an Unlimited plan) and Fubo, which carries ESPN and offers a free trial to new subscribers.
Tampa Bay and Boston are scheduled for an opening faceoff of 6:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, Feb. 1 from Raymond James Stadium, home of the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The main broadcast of Lightning-Bruins will air on ESPN. An alternate broadcast dedicated to the deaf and hard of hearing will be available on ESPN+, which can be streamed with a subscription to the ESPN app’s Select plan.
AccuWeather predicts a high of 51 degrees and a low of 35 with periods of clouds and sun today in Tampa. Winds are expected to blow from the northwest at 15-20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph during the day, but the worst should die down at night. There is a 25% chance of rain during the day.
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