Fenway transformed for Flyers vs. Bruins

BOSTON - It seemed a little surreal seeing hockey players skate yesterday on a makeshift rink that stretched from foul line to foul line in the home that Teddy Ballgame, Yaz and Big Papi made famous.

It seemed a little surreal to see snow being plowed near where Carlton Fisk famously waved - and pleaded - for his long drive to stay fair in the 1975 World Series.

It seemed a little surreal to see Fenway Park, the snow filling the seats, transformed into a winter wonderland in order for the Flyers and Boston Bruins to meet in today's NHL Winter Classic. The first face-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. and the game will be on NBC.

Surreal . . . but real.

"It was amazing to just walk out there," Flyers left winger Scott Hartnell said. "I've been here for baseball games and you never expect to see this."

Believe - that the Green Monster, the fabled left-field wall, had huge logos of the Flyers, Bruins and the Winter Classic on it.

Believe - that many players said the ice was as good as almost any NHL rink - though it could be a slow, sloppy surface today if the light snow continues to fall.

Believe - that the first-base dugout has been turned into an unofficial studio for TV cameras and electronic equipment, and that a carnival-type atmosphere - complete with games for fans, souvenir shops and eateries - filled the streets around Fenway.

By the time both teams had completed practicing yesterday, about a quarter inch of snow was atop the ice.

It snowed during the Flyers' hour-long practice, giving the players an unusual obstacle.

"If you can't see the puck, you could have a problem," Flyers defenseman Kimmo Timonen deadpanned. "If the weather is like this [today], it'll affect the game, for sure."

Not that Timonen or any of the other players were complaining.

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Timonen said.

"Being here feels like Christmas," defenseman Braydon Coburn said.

"Today was really special," captain Mike Richards said. "You think about it a little bit coming in, [but] you don't really realize how special it is until you actually get out there and see Fenway Park and the Green Monster while you're playing hockey. It's pretty neat."

The Flyers will bring a four-game winning streak into the game. It took them a while to adapt to new coach Peter Laviolette's attack-type system that emphasizes speed, but "things are starting to come naturally," said left winger Simon Gagne, who had a hat trick in Wednesday's 6-0 demolition of the New York Rangers. "When you're used to playing the same system for three years . . . it takes a while to get used to another system. Now it's a natural instinct, especially the last four games."

Weather conditions will play a major role in today's matchup.

"If there's a little bit of snow, the puck certainly doesn't move as well, and you can't stickhandle as well," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "We're certainly going to stay away from the fancy stuff and probably do more chipping and going after it and getting the puck to the net."

Bruins goalie Tim Thomas said he had no issues following the puck yesterday.

"Actually, it was a lot better than I thought it would be, between the natural lighting and the lights at Fenway," he said. "Seeing the puck was no problem."

If the snowy conditions continue today, "the flow of the game will probably suffer a little bit, just with the amount of snow on the ice," Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger said. "The game will be pretty simplified quite a bit. It was pretty hard to make quick passes and things of that nature with that much snow [yesterday], but I think you'll be seeing guys throwing pucks at the net and it hitting a snow bank and carom into the top shelf and stuff like that. You never know what it's going to be like when you have conditions like that."