NHL Plans Second Outdoor Game in California

Hope you liked all the outdoor hockey the NHL played last season — it looks like it's back for an encore.

In mid-June, the league announced the Washington Capitals would host the Chicago Blackhawks on January 1 in the 2015 Winter Classic. And yesterday, the first game in the 2015 Stadium Series was added to the schedule. The San Jose Sharks will be the home team when they face the Stanley Cup-champion Los Angeles Kings in an outdoor game on February 21. It will be played at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, which is the new home of the San Francisco 49ers.

"Two years in a row now the state of California would have hosted two outdoor games," Sharks chief operating officer John Tortora said. "And this shows how much the sport of hockey has grown in California over the last 20 years and is now very much a part of our fabric."

When the NHL announced last season's outdoor game between the Kings and Anaheim Ducks, everyone was worried about it being too warm for hockey outside. The temperature hit 63 degrees, which made it the warmest outdoor game the league has played, but still cooler than some predicted.

Northern California has an advantage over SoCal in the weather department. It's considerably cooler in the Bay Area, especially in the winter. And if some fog rolls in, it could be an eerie and awesome setting for an outdoor game.

The only question now is: How many more outdoor games will the NHL announce before the start of the season? Make your predictions in the comments section below!

Photo: twitter.com/SINow, logos via Sharks and Kings