1991-1992 N.H.L. SEASON
1991-1992 N.H.L. SEASON; Gamble Works: Rangers Play In Las Vegas
By ROBERT McG. THOMAS Jr.
Published: September 29, 1991
Sure Wayne Gretzky scored a goal, and for that matter the Los Angeles Kings beat the Rangers, 5-2, before a sellout crowd of more than 13,000 spectators, but for all the hockey derring-do Friday night, the exhibition game seemed more an engineering feat than an athletic achievement.
That's because the game was played outdoors in Las Vegas, Nev., in 85-degree temperature not usually associated with a sport in which ice is the essential ingredient.
Held at the Caesars Palace outdoor arena, the first hockey game played in Las Vegas since 1968 and the first ever held outdoors there, required plenty of preparation, including trucking in three huge refrigeration units, three times the normal ice power for a National Hockey League game, at a cost of $135,000.
Among other things, hardboard insulation coated with a vapor barrier was laid down on the arena floor, then covered with sand to form the base for 22 miles of refrigeration tubes, five-sixteenths of an inch in diameter, which circulated a mixture of super-cooled methanol and water. Some Skepticism
Because N.H.L. officials were just a bit skeptical, technicians began spraying on the succesive thin layers of water on Tuesday so the rink could be tested Thursday night.
During the 95-degree days, the ice was protected from the sun by a reflective blanket.
The only weather problem was rain, which turned the surface into a lake Friday afternoon. But the imported Zamboni and the refrigeration system quickly restored the surface to game condition.
Indeed, the main technical problem uncovered before the game was that the giant refrigeration system made the ice too cold. When it began to crack, the temerature of the ice was raised from 8 to 11 degrees.
During the game the only problem was an invasion of flying insects.
Meanwhilke, another scheduled exhibition game Friday night, between the Islanders and the Boston Bruins at the Florida Suncoast Dome in St. Petersburg, had to be canceled.
The ice in the distinctly indoor arena was too soft.