The Sabres' Daniel Paille celebrates a goal by teammate Brian Campbell, not shown, against the Penguins during the second period of the NHL Winter Classic outdoor hockey game at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., Tuesday. <i>Associated Press</i>

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. – Snow, a sold-out football stadium and Sidney Crosby scoring the shootout winner.

The NHL couldn’t have scripted a better finish for its showcase event, the Winter Classic outdoor game, to kick off 2008.

Even Sabres managing partner Larry Quinn couldn’t complain, even though Buffalo wound up losing, 2-1, to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday afternoon.

“We did this for the NHL to build the sport,” Quinn said, referring to the game being broadcast across North America, on NBC and Canada’s CBC. “I was down along the glass for the shootout and at the opening of the game. And the feeling was just hard to describe: The noise, the enthusiasm.”

In other NHL games on Tuesday, it was: Washington 6, Ottawa 3; Toronto 4, Tampa Bay 3 in a shootout; and Los Angeles 9, Chicago 2.

At times it was deafening in a game played before a league-record crowd of 71,217 at Ralph Wilson Stadium in the NHL’s second outdoor game, after the Oilers and Montreal Canadiens played in Edmonton in 2003, and first held in the United States.

“You look up at the people and there was just this incredible celebration of our team, of our sport, of our city, our winters, everything. I’m so happy to have had that experience,” Quinn said. “I just wish we had gotten a lucky bounce.”

Oh, that’s right. The Sabres lost, leaving them winless in their past four games (0-2-2).

The winners, besides the Penguins, might have been the publicity-hungry NHL, which offered up a perfect backdrop for its sport – falling snow, end-to-end action, and a suspenseful finish that was decided by its star player, Crosby.

“This was a fun afternoon,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said. “Based on the response, on our ability to execute, and the inquiries we’re getting from other clubs for similar activities, this is something we’re going to look at doing at again.”

Crosby was honored to be a part of it, noting that it was bigger than a mere regular-season contest.

“Growing up, I played a lot outside,” said Crosby, a Nova Scotia native. “When you see 70,000 people jammed into a stadium to watch hockey, it’s a good sign. The atmosphere and environment, I don’t think you can beat that.”