For Pouliot, playing in cold will be another warm experience

NEWARK, N.J. --Bouncing from team to team in the past eight-plus years has been a unique benefit for Buffalo Sabres forward Benoit Pouliot.
Pouliot has become a veteran of NHL outdoor games, and is about to play in another one.

The 2018 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic between the Sabres and New York Rangers at Citi Field on Monday (1 p.m. ET; NBC, SN, TVA Sports, NHL.TV) will be Pouliot's fifth NHL outdoor game with four different teams.
He played with the Montreal Canadiens in the 2011 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic at McMahon Stadium in Calgary. He played two games with the Rangers at Yankee Stadium in the 2014 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series. He also played with the Edmonton Oilers in the 2016 Tim Horton's Heritage Classic at Investors Group Field in Winnipeg.
Pouliot's teams have won three straight outdoor games, and he has three points (one goal, two assists).
Vancouver Canucks forward Thomas Vanek is the only other player in the NHL to play in at least four outdoor games with four different teams (Sabres, New York Islanders, Minnesota Wild, Detroit Red Wings).
"It's pretty cool," Pouliot said after the Sabres' 4-3 overtime win against the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on Friday. "I can't lie, it's pretty fun, pretty cool. Just the week leading up to it, the hype around it, everything, it's pretty fun to see and be a part of it. I've been lucky enough to have a few outdoor games, so one more on the list is nice. I always enjoy the experience."

Pouliot still shivers when he talks about his first outdoor game experience on Feb. 20, 2011 in Calgary, where the Canadiens lost 4-0 in front of 41,022.
"I remember it was like minus-40 degrees Celsius," Pouliot said. "I couldn't really feel my hands."
It was actually minus-8 degrees Celsius (17.6 degrees Fahrenheit) at puck drop and it got colder during the game when the wind chill picked up.
"It was terrible," Pouliot said, laughing. "It was very cold but the whole experience was fun with it being in Calgary. I just remember being really, really, really cold and the bench was so warm, so it was nice to sit on it."
Not quite to the point where he didn't want to take a shift, but close.
"It was still good to go out there," said Pouliot, who played 10:39 in that game, "but when you got back to the bench we were a little bit, you know, kind of happy."
Pouliot has only terrific memories of his two outdoor games with the Rangers in 2014.
"It was awesome," he said. "Yankee Stadium, it was an unreal experience."
The Rangers defeated the Devils 7-3 in an afternoon game on Jan. 26, 2014 and won 2-1 against the Islanders in a primetime game on Jan. 29.

Pouliot had an assist on forward Mats Zuccarello's game-winning goal at 12:44 of the second period against the Devils, and scored the game-tying goal at 19:13 of the second against the Islanders.
"Those were my favorites because of the city, the atmosphere we were in, Yankee Stadium," he said. "Those were unreal. And now, Citi Field, it's going to be great."
Pouliot also had an assist in Edmonton's 3-0 win against Winnipeg in the Heritage Classic on Oct. 23, 2016, when it was 50.1 degrees Fahrenheit at puck drop.
By comparison, it's supposed to be minus-18 degrees Fahrenheit in Winnipeg on Saturday.
"In Winnipeg, it would have been really cold if it was later in the season," Pouliot said, smiling. "It was a nice, sunny day. We got pushed back a little bit because of the sun, but the weather and the conditions of the ice were awesome."

The hope is the same thing happens Monday at the home of Major League Baseball's New York Mets. The forecast calls for a dry, sunny and windy day with a high of 19 degrees Fahrenheit.
So, it'll be cold, but maybe not quite Calgary cold. Either way, Pouliot expects another memorable experience.
"It just reminds you of when you were young and playing outside on the pond, and now you get to play with an NHL team in front of 40,000 or 50,000 people," Pouliot said. "It's fun. The guys enjoy it. Every guy I've ever played with in one really enjoyed the experience. Just the fact that you're outside, looking up, you see the sky, it's either sunny or dark at night, it's a great feeling."