Fans warming to charms of big league ice hockey

The National Hockey League kicked off 2014 with the biggest ice hockey bash ever on Wednesday, firing the opening salvo in a “shock-and-awe” campaign designed to turn casual fans into avid ones.

An announced record hockey crowd of 105,491 braved brutal conditions to fill massive Michigan Stadium for the NHL’s outdoor Winter Classic as the Toronto Maple Leafs clinched a 3-2 shootout win over the Detroit Red Wings.

The game-time temperate was -11C with a wind chill of zero, in contrast to the average temperature of the previous five Winter Classics which was 4C, and an average attendance of 53,045.