BUFFALO - With the bag pipes chiming and snow gently falling on “The Ralph” both teams came out for their pre-skate to a thunderous applause. This is one of the few pre-skates where players from the opposing teams didn’t mouth off at all they were more interested in checking out the surface, since it has now changed because of the temperature drop and precipitation. Both goalies on each team were feverously manicuring the ice in the crease to get it exactly the way that they like it.

The ice looks a bit slippery and players were trying to figure out where they could comfortably set themselves up on the ice to pull off their patented moves since the surface had a light dusting on it. There was a shovel brigade waiting in the wings and at some point it is expected that they might have to clear some of the pre-game snow off the ice much the same way the kids did for many years when they played out on the pond.

NBC had Bob Costas positioned outside reporting about the conditions out on the ice where he originally cut his teeth in hockey many years ago.

After stirring renditions of “Oh Canada” and “God Bless America” the game started at 1:27 PM EST and after Colby Armstrong scored the first goal, on the first shift 21 seconds into the first period the home crowd got testy. Sidney Crosby showed a burst of speed that was too much for the Buffalo defense. His rush made the play showing why he is such a special player.

The hits started early in the period and Pittsburgh defenseman Brooks Orpik really hit his shoulder hard against the boards (after being upended) in the corner compliments of Buffalo’s Adam Mair. Playing at these low temperatures can really make a hit like that sting for a while.

On Pittsburgh’s first power play the puck was just jumping around and considering the ice had a good half-inch of snow on it that really made it hard to keep the rubber on the stick.

At the first stoppage of play the shovel brigade was out there clearing out some of the troublesome powder. Surprisingly the Zamboni’s came out midway in the period to smooth out the surface. This caused a slight delay but a necessary one. Soon after there was a longer delay when there was a hole in the ice that got a bit bigger throughout the period. Besides using slush to fill it they were spraying some sort of sealant on it to make sure that it remained filled.

When Buffalo had a power play late in the first sticks were breaking and sure one-timers weren’t so sure after all.

In the second period I had a chance to sit outside and feel the wind on my face, see a haze in the air, and that’s what the players are going through. The offensive defenseman like Brian Campbell on Buffalo and Sergei Gonchar of the Penguins are creating the most chances by launching long-range shots. When Campbell got his goal early in the second the home crowd erupted with an extremely loud cheer. The key to this game seems to be keeping the puck on the outside of the walls and that way it doesn’t jump around too much. When a puck hit the boards it had a deadened sound and that’s another factor you rarely see indoors. The snow finally stopped with a minute to go in the second and the score was tied 1-1.

Sabres center Michael Ryan was wearing eye black like a football or baseball player to possibly fight off the glare of the lights.

Early in the third period the snow picked up in intensity and the game played on. At the 10-minute mark the horn sounded and the teams changed ends. A first for the NHL outdoor games. In the shootout both teams decided to share the same net so the goalies rotated.

The fans really responded to both teams’ retro jerseys and maybe that’s a sign that they should wear them more often.

Sid won the game in the shootout but the fans were the real winners in this game. Crosby signed some autographs right after the goal and Buffalo's Drew Stafford (who was scratched) was watching the overtime and shootout from the tunnel with the rest of the media.

“Yeah I think that we all watched the Edmonton-Montreal game and I think a lot of guys wished that they were a part of it and we were lucky enough to get to have that opportunity,” said Crosby. “You know for me growing up, I played a lot outside and a lot of their guys did too and when you see 70,000 people jammed into a stadium to watch hockey it’s a good sign.”