The NHL has a storied history of outdoor games. Here’s our Top 10 moments from them.

While not the novelty they were, say, a decade ago, outdoor professional hockey games remain one of the purest and most visibly appealing events in sports.

The NHL has used these annual events as ways to market the game to new fans, create unique backdrops, and allow players to rekindle those childhood memories of skating on a pond or backyard rink.

Saturday night, in the first of two Stadium Series games at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., the Flyers will play the New Jersey Devils(8 p.m., ABC). On Sunday, it will be the New York Islanders and Rangers (3 p.m., ABC).

The game Saturday, which could have major playoff implications, will be the Flyers’ sixth outdoor game and the 40th regular-season NHL game overall to be played outdoors. In that vein, we took a look back at 10 of the top moments, including several involving the Orange and Black, from the NHL’s previous outdoor showcases:

Tailgating. Texas. Country Music. Cowboy hats. No, we aren’t talking about a college football game, we are referring to the 2020 Winter Classic at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas between the Stars and Nashville Predators. The result was 85,630 rowdy and well-hydrated hockey fans in a distinctly Dallas celebration of two non-traditional hockey markets. The crowd, the second-biggest in NHL history, was treated to a 4-2 Stars win, as well as a rodeo in between periods.

But while the partying may have dominated the build-up, the game is best known for making Corey Perry into a meme. Less than three minutes into the game, Perry was kicked out for elbowing current Flyers defenseman Ryan Ellis. The result was Perry having to make the longest and loneliest trek ever back to the locker room to “feel shame.”

With no fans allowed to be present during the heat of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2021, the NHL got creative and sought picturesque backdrops that replicated the ideal pond hockey experience. The NHL settled on the south shore of Lake Tahoe in Nevada, surrounded by beautiful mountains and pine trees.

The event was marred by postponements because of problems with the ice, but the views and vibes were worth it in the end. The Flyers didn’t enjoy the event quite as much as they were blown out 7-3 against the Boston Bruins and hat-trick gero turned “Barbie” aficionado David Pastrňák.

Boston and Philadelphia’s longstanding sports rivalry opened up a new chapter as the Bruins and Flyers faced off at fabled Fenway Park in the 2010 Winter Classic.

The Flyers led a 1-0 pitcher’s duel for much of the contest but former Flyer Mark Recchi tied things late in the third before Marco Sturm won it for Boston in extra innings ... sorry, overtime. The game featured the first fight in Winter Classic history, with Dan Carcillo taking down Shawn Thornton.

Seventeen years before the first Winter Classic, and 26 years before the Vegas Golden Knights were founded, the NHL held an outdoor exhibition game between the Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers in 1991 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

The rink was built over the parking lot and thanks to extra precautions the ice held up as well as could be expected against temperatures hitting 90 degrees. The event which sat just over 13,000 spectators delivered all the glitz and glamour of Vegas, with Wayne Gretzky, the biggest star of all, scoring in a 5-2 Kings win.

The NHL’s first outdoor regular-season game took place in 2003 at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, the home of the Canadian Football League franchise now known as the Elks. The game, which paved the way for the creation of the Winter Classic and subsequent satellite outdoor events, is remembered most for its frigid temperatures. The temperature was about minus-18 at puck drop between the Edmonton Oilers and Montreal Canadiens with Habs goaltender José Théodore famously wearing a toque over his helmet to try to keep his ears warm.

Philadelphia’s first chance to host a Winter Classic came in 2012 at Citizens Bank Park against the New York Rangers. Sean Couturier may be the only Flyers player left from that game, but two other key figures in the organization played their part that day, with general manager Danny Brière playing for the Flyers, and coach John Tortorella behind the Rangers bench.

The key moment of the back-and-forth game involved Brière when the Flyers, trailing by 3-2, were awarded a penalty shot with under 20 seconds remaining. With a chance to tie the game, Brière’s five-hole attempt was thwarted by Hall of Famer Henrik Lundqvist much to the chagrin of the 46,967.

The second Winter Classic, in 2009, was the first at a baseball stadium, and where better for a rivalry game than the Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field.

In the frenetic 10-goal affair between the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks, the Wings rallied from a 3-1 deficit to win 6-4. The highlight was an end-to-end rush from Pavel Datsyuk that he finished off with a vintage Datsyukian deke to put the Wings ahead for good.

The Flyers’ lone win in five outdoor tries was at least a memorable one. Trailing the rival Pittsburgh Penguins by 3-1 with just over 3 minutes remaining in the 2019 Stadium Series, the Flyers scored twice with the goalie pulled, including the tying goal with under 20 seconds left from Jake Voracek. That set the stage for captain Claude Giroux to be the overtime hero, with a goal sending Lincoln Financial Field into rapture to complete the 4-3 comeback win.

Also, let’s never speak again about the Flyers custom helmets for this game.

After holding previous editions at NFL stadiums and MLB ballparks, the NHL went bigger in 2014 by bringing the Winter Classic to The Big House at the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Michigan Stadium did not disappoint, as a record NHL crowd of 105,491 took in Toronto’s 3-2 shootout win over Detroit in an Original Six showdown.

Sorry Flyers fans. but there is only one correct answer here. The first Winter Classic in 2008 brought a new spectacle and experience for hockey fans in the United States and was such a success that the NHL continued the New Year’s Day tradition 15-plus years longer. The inaugural game pitted the Pittsburgh Penguins against the Buffalo Sabres in front of a then-record crowd of 71,217 people at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y.

Add in snow, some beautiful throwback uniforms, and a dramatic shootout, and all the ingredients were there for a special moment. The icing on the cake came when Sidney Crosby, the poster boy for the league, potted the game-winner in the shootout. The NHL probably couldn’t have written a better script for their first major outdoor experiment.

» READ MORE: The Flyers have had 20 captains. Can you name them all?