The hosting Maple Leafs pulled out to a 4–1 lead in the third period, only to have the Red Wings score the tying goal with one second remaining in regulation; in overtime, first overall draft pick Auston Matthews scored the game-winning goal, securing a 5–4 victory for the Leafs.

However, in the wake of the record-low ratings of the 2016 edition (which included the Montreal Canadiens), president of NBC Sports programming Jon Miller argued that the presence of a Canadian team can affect U.S. ratings, as American teams guarantee local audiences.

[5] The decision to include a Canadian team in the 2014 Winter Classic was influenced by the unexpectedly high ratings performance of the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals (which featured the Boston Bruins and the Vancouver Canucks), which led NBC and the NHL to reconsider the conventional wisdom that a game involving a Canadian opponent would not rate as highly as an all-U.S.

[6] The 2017 Winter Classic was ultimately awarded to Busch Stadium, and would feature the St. Louis Blues and the Chicago Blackhawks.

[7][8] This decision also opened the January 1 date for a special outdoor game awarded to Toronto, known as the Centennial Classic.

Then in the third, goals by Leo Komarov, Mitch Marner, Connor Brown and Auston Matthews put Toronto ahead 4–1 with 7:55 left in regulation.

The Rogers NHL Centennial Classic Alumni Game was held on December 31, and played between veteran players from both teams.

The Red Wings Alumni lead the game 3-0 to almost the halfway point, with goals from Darren McCarty, Igor Larionov and Brendan Shanahan, but the Maple Leafs Alumni rallied to tie the game, with goals from Wendel Clark, Darcy Tucker and Tie Domi.

The goal was disputed by the Leafs Alumni because the puck was tapped in by Draper on a rebound off a slapshot by Dino Ciccarelli.