2018 Winter Classic: New York Rangers to face Buffalo Sabres

The 2018 NHL Winter Classic will be played on Jan. 1, 2018, in New York at Citi Field, with the New York Rangers hosting the Buffalo Sabres, the NHL announced on Tuesday.

Both the Sabres and Rangers will be making their second appearance in the NHL's New Year's Day outdoor game. Buffalo hosted the first-ever event against the Pittsburgh Penguins, a 2-1 shootout loss, at Ralph Wilson Stadium in 2008. New York defeated the Philadelphia Flyers at Citizens Bank Park at the 2012 event.

"The Winter Classic made its debut under snowy Buffalo skies in 2008, and we look forward to celebrating the 10th anniversary of that landmark event by matching the Sabres with their intrastate rivals, the New York Rangers, in the 2018 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Citi Field," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said.

The 2018 Winter Classic will be the sixth to be held in a baseball stadium. It was previously held at Wrigley Field in Chicago (2009), Fenway Park in Boston (2010), Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia (2012), Nationals Park in Washington (2015) and Busch Stadium in St. Louis (2017).

Buffalo and New York have faced off in 177 regular-season games since the 1970-71 season, with the Sabres holding a 196-172 edge in points