“I don’t think you can call this anything but a success,” were the words Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Ty Conklin uttered not once, not twice, but three times following his team’s 2-1 shootout victory in the AMP Energy NHL Winter Classic.

Ty, I agree wholeheartedly.

The League staged a wonderful event, filled with an unbelievable set of 71,217 fans here at Ralph Wilson Stadium who witnessed a good hockey game. It wasn’t unbelievable. I can’t call it that. However, this was a good game. Up and down with lots of scoring chances. The Sabres had 37 shots. The Penguins had 25. Even though there were only two goals scored in the 65 minutes of play, that’s some good offense for a game built on scoring chances, not goals.

I enjoyed every moment of this game, and it was even more spectacular as we watched the final five minutes of regulation, the entire overtime session, and the shootout from the tunnel where the players entered and exited the field.

You could really get a grip on the sheer magnitude of the atmosphere. I can only imagine what it must have felt like to be a player on that ice, which by the way held up quite well under the circumstances. There were some issues that had to get tended to at times, and some extra ice cuts necessary to make the playing surface suitable, but the players didn’t seem to mind too much. Everyone I spoke to after the game had nothing but good reviews for Dan Craig’s ice.

And, could anyone have asked – outside of Buffalo fans, of course – for a better finish.

Sidney Crosby, the star of the show, the star of the League, the star of hockey today, racing down against Ryan Miller, one of the best goalies in the NHL. Crosby deked five times before finally splitting Miller’s legs for the shootout winning goal.

Hey, just check out the Frozen Moment on NHL.com. That’s the new lasting image for the National Hockey League. Crosby with a huge smile, arms up in the air. Snow falling and fans screaming behind him. Hey, even the NHL on NBC logo gets in there as well. Now that’s good marketing, too.

We’ve got to finish up here and head out. And, tomorrow I get to go home, so I’m really excited about that. I get to see my wife, Emily, and my dog, Charley. Eight days away is a long time, folks.

So, here’s me signing off from Buffalo. Hope you all enjoyed the coverage, and go to NHL.com soon to see everything from today. I feel safe in saying you will officially be blown away, kind of like I was with this entire event from start to finish.

Happy New Year hockey fans. See you in New York.