Princess Auto Stadium will bring outdoor NHL hockey back to Manitoba on Oct. 25, when the Montreal Canadiens face the Winnipeg Jets in the first Heritage Classic in three years. Both clubs will take the ice in newly unveiled sweaters built around franchise history rather than a one-game novelty look.
Winnipeg’s road-white set reaches back to the original Jets of the 1980s and 1990s. The design revisits the white Heritage Classic uniform the organization used in 2016, again centered on the legacy Jets crest. This edition adds texture: the crest is made in felt with chain stitching, while the numerals on the back use a matching two-layer felt finish.
Montreal will stay within its familiar blue, white and red palette, but its outdoor uniform draws details from several chapters of Canadiens history. The club’s crest has been subtly reshaped for the occasion and includes running-stitch work.
There are a couple of nods meant for close inspection. “Les Habitants,” one of the Canadiens’ enduring nicknames, is printed inside the back collar for the first time. A fleur-de-lis on the loop label recognizes Quebec, the province Montreal calls home.
The Heritage Classic is the NHL’s outdoor series reserved for Canadian matchups. It began in 2003 with Montreal playing the Edmonton Oilers, and the Oct. 25 date will mark the Canadiens’ fifth outdoor appearance overall. Three have come in Heritage Classics, alongside one Winter Classic and the NHL Centennial Classic.
For the Jets, it will be outdoor game No. 3, with each appearance coming under the Heritage Classic banner. After the long pause in the event’s schedule, the Winnipeg-Montreal meeting gives the series a return date and gives both dressing rooms a throwback look for it.
