Winter Classic Quickly Becomes Snow Bowl As Big House Rink Needs Shovels to Keep it Clear (Video)

Hockey outside is a great idea, but it becomes a bit sticky (oh, the puns) when snow is involved.

The Winter Classic between the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs at Michigan’s Big House began with great fanfare Wednesday, but the snow that started falling the evening before and continued to filter in throughout the morning soon made skating somewhat complicated. While the NHL had helpers armed with shovels on hand to scoop up snow at down points, there is a lot of snow on the ice — and it’s still falling.

The NHL said earlier Wednesday that the show would go on with shoveling in between if needed, but even this is a bit much for hardy hockey fans.

Check out the snow accumulation below.