Winter Classic moved to 8 p.m. start

PITTSBURGH - The NHL moved the Winter Classic to a nighttime start to avoid predicted daytime rain in Pittsburgh.

The game, scheduled to start shortly after 1 p.m. Saturday, was moved to 8 p.m. It will be the first of the four Winter Classics to be played at night.

The NHL announced the switch Friday so the 67,000 fans - about 20,000 from Washington - had time to adjust their plans. Forecasters are calling for nearly an inch of rain before it lets up late in the day.

The game cannot be played in steady rain because it would significantly increase the risk of player injuries.

Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux never took their can-you-top-this rivalry outdoors, back to the purest form of hockey played on ponds instead of indoor palaces. Where whipping winds and a frozen shooting hand can influence the result as much as a hot goaltender.

So this must do: Sidney Crosby vs. Alex Ovechkin, the sport's two biggest names and rivals in every sense, playing the NHL's showcase regular-season game before more fans than both teams once drew for extended homestands.

To Lemieux, the Winter Classic outdoor game pairing Crosby's Penguins and Ovechkin's Capitals before 67,0000 spectators at Heinz Field is perfect.

"It's two different styles, two different eras but guys who are great players," Lemieux said. "When he [Crosby] is doing is more impressive than what I did years ago." The weather? Anything but perfect.

Crosby likes the idea of a primetime classic.

"I don't see anything wrong with playing under the lights here," Crosby said. "I think [it'll] be pretty nice. We should all be enjoying ourselves no matter what the scenario."

"As coaches and players, we don't care if we go at midnight," Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau said. "Let's go."

None of the first three Winter Classics in Buffalo, Chicago or Boston were disrupted by the weather, but the NHL understood the inherent risk in taking an indoor game outdoors.

"It's part of what makes the game great," NHL chief operating officer John Collins said.

Crosby is scoring at a rate unseen since Lemieux had 161 points in the 1995-96 season; his 25-game scoring streak ended Wednesday against the Islanders, but, with 65 points in 39 games, he's on pace for 137 points. "He's been incredible all year," Lemieux said Friday. "What he did with the 25 games with a point, that's pretty hard to do in this day and age."