UPDATED Saturday, February 6, 2010 --- 7:04 p.m.

If there was any doubt, outdoor hockey is proving to be quite a draw. Even though the UW will not break the attendance record they hoped for, people were buying tickets right up until the puck dropped.

A steady stream of fans began flowing into Camp Randall early Saturday afternoon.

More than 52,000 tickets sold ahead of time assured a packed lower bowl in the stadium.

But a steady flow of gameday ticket sales have the athletic department ready to open the upper deck just in case.

"Friends said they're coming up for today's game and this would be a great time to come and enjoy the weather," said Andrew Starzinski, who just bought tickets Saturday morning.

"Peer pressure got the best of me so I just decided to come," said Amy Szilard.

This outdoor hockey game comes with all the tailgating sights and sounds of Saturday football, just a few extra steps to stay warm.

"I thought it was going to be so cold and snowy and stuff. But it's definitely warmer than I thought," said Whitney Owusu.

Once you go from outside actually into the stadium the wind is really whipping the bowl. It's the same sight as a football game but certainly not the same temperature.

"It's certainly colder, but so far not too bad," said Chris Williamson, who bought his tickets to the game almost as soon as they were available.

"I have seven layers on top and three on bottom. It's mostly my hands and my feet," Megan Gleaves said.

It's costing the university several hundred thousand dollars to put this event on, but they're already confident they'll break even. And every fan buying tickets and braving the cold today moves them closer to making money.

"It's supposed to be colder, so I'll bundle up though," Gleaves said.

It's proving to be like a football game in more ways than one -- early in the game the entire lower bowl was packed, except for the student section where they trickled in as the game went on.

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MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Brendan Smith scored two power-play goals in the third period to rally Wisconsin to a 3-2 win over Michigan Saturday in front of 55,031 fans at the Camp Randall Hockey Classic.

Smith thrilled the crowd that braved temperatures in the lower 20s at Camp Randall Stadium, scoring the game-winner at 18:38 of the third period. He also netted the equalizer four minutes earlier.

Jordy Murray opened the scoring for Wisconsin (16-7-4) early in the first period, but Scooter Vaughan tied it for the Wolverines (15-13-1) late in the period.

Michigan went up 2-1 on Kevin Lynch's goal at 11:03 of the third period.

Wisconsin goalie Scott Gudmundson had 22 saves and Michigan's Bryan Hogan had 24 stops.

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.

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Posted Friday, February 5, 2010 --- 10:58 p.m.

Months of preparation and thousands of dollars have come down to this. There are only a few hours left before the Camp Randall Hockey Classic.

Snow is piled high in the endzones as winter wind whips through Camp Randall Stadium.

These bleachers are empty, but hundreds of skaters pouring out of the visitors tunnel are a sign of change to come.

For the first time ever, this stadium will play host to an outdoor hockey game.

And with the rink ready to go, fans get the first chance to lace them up.

"I just saw it as an opportunity we couldn't pass up," one skater said.

The fun is starting tonight for a couple hundred on the ice. But come Saturday, the stands will be packed with 50,000 for the big games.

"It's the fourth largest outdoor game in history right now," said Justin Doherty of UW Athletics. "So I don't think that's anything for us to not be proud of. I mean, I think we're really proud of where we're at with that."

The original goal was to break an attendance record. But with about 52,000 tickets sold, it doesn't look like that's going to happen. There are still tickets available for walk-up tomorrow and the athletic department says the upper deck is ready and they'll open it up if they need to.

"Team selection: Michigan made a little difference. If it had been Minnesota here I think they definitely would have sold out the entire thing," said skater Glen Haag.

With only hours remaining until the puck drops, final preparations are underway and even with all the money spent to get the stadium ready, the university says it already looks like they'll at least break even.

"It's been fun, we've learned a lot, it's been interesting," Doherty said. "But ultimately, hopefully tomorrow is a special day."