The Penguins were like kids in a candy store after they were surprised with an outdoor practice



On Wednesday afternoon the Pittsburgh Penguins held their routine practice, only the players didn’t know there was a surprise waiting for them at the rink upon their arrival.

Instead of heading to the location of their schedule practice, the team bus took the players to the Saddledome where head coach Mike Sullivan broke the news to them that they’ll be practicing outdoors instead.



Hockey in its purest form. pic.twitter.com/v7h16tYMxj — Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 18, 2019

Hockey in its purest form. A post shared by Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) on Dec 18, 2019 at 2:47pm PST

The practice was held at the Valley Ridge Community Association in Calgary and it truly did look like they were playing hockey in a winter wonderland.



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Skatin' in a winter wonderland: https://t.co/DQ3YcR3Jfp pic.twitter.com/cGafm2Y4dq — Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 18, 2019 Thank you to John Gabert and the Valley Ridge Community Association for hosting our outdoor practice this afternoon. What a beautiful place to play hockey. pic.twitter.com/ulBxV92RD7 — Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 18, 2019

The local residents are properly used to seeing people on the ice playing hockey all the time, but it’s not every day you see an NHL team hit the ice at your local outdoor rink.



Some of Calgary’s first responders have stopped by to check out the @penguins outdoor skate. Awesome atmosphere here pic.twitter.com/2dLtuMCYWi — Josh Getzoff (@PensJG) December 18, 2019

It’s not every day you get to practice on an outdoor rink and it’s not every day you practice on a sheet of ice that also has basketball nets, so Kris Letang gave it a go and had some fun with his surroundings.



From the minors to the pros, everyone loves getting the chance to practice or play on a properly executed outdoor rink.



The calm blue sky.

The cold, crisp air.

Youthful exuberance.

Teammates that become best friends.



Whether you've played one or 1,000 games, there's always something special about moments like this. pic.twitter.com/K4TNRlTXUA — Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 18, 2019

Not a bad way to spend the day.

(H/T Twitter/penguins)