On New Year's Day, the Bruins will take over Gillette Stadium for the 2016 Winter Classic against the Canadiens. Although the Patriots may be pushed from Foxborough for the weekend, their presence will be felt.
The Bruins teased goaltender Tuukka Rask's mask for the outdoor game, and it is rich in Patriotism. Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman and Stephen Gostkowski all make cameos on the helmet, which also features snowflakes.
#NHLBruins #WinterClassic pic.twitter.com/2lUYZqfO1J
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) December 31, 2015
On top of this, Bill Belichick actually got in a morning skate on the makeshift rink with Bruins coach Claude Julien Thursday.
Here's Belichick on skates pic.twitter.com/Pq4YKIjx14
— Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) December 31, 2015
Bill Belichick and Claude Julien are skating together on the ice pic.twitter.com/bhe4UFQyPp
— Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) December 31, 2015
"We didn't have a lot of ice in Maryland but skated at Andover, skated at Wesleyan, played in the old huff and puff league when I was in New Jersey with the Giants," Belichick said, referencing his Annapolis upbringing and Phillips Academy Andover days. "It's 30, 40-year-old guys playing at midnight [because] it's the only time you get ice time. Drive 45 minutes to get out there and fall around and slash each other.
"Wish I could've played hockey. It's a great sport. It's fast, a lot of action, contact, skill, speed. Football, lacrosse, hockey, they all kind of have those elements of contact, speed, skill in varying forms but they're all exciting."
Belichick even made another SnapFace joke about the Winter Classic:
"Gotta get in the spirit. Ready for that #WinterClassic."
And yes, it's going on SnapFace & InstaFace.
https://t.co/5sVxlZxRAg
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) December 31, 2015
As a reminder, Gronkowski celebrated last year's Patriots' Super Bowl win by spiking a puck at a Bruins game.
The Patriots close out their regular season in the Miami sun at the Dolphins Sunday.
-- Follow Jeffrey Eisenband on Twitter @JeffEisenband.