They actually did play “O Canada,” but Fox was at commercial.  I read something about Justin Morneau being ticked off because it was a tape, though, rather than live:

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20090715/morneau_ocanada_090715/20090715?hub=Canada

Don’t know if it is urban myth, but it is widely thought here that most of us don’t know the words to O Canada.  We almost always hear a bilingual version of it and most of us aren’t bilingual…so the verse we always hear in our non native tongue is gibberish to us.

Word around Boston is that NBC prefers two US-based teams for this format - the better to attract US-based viewers.

I find it hard to believe that having the Flyers play the Bruins will attract many more viewer than the Canadiens would.  Hockey tends to broadcast to a more loyal following of fans that appreciate the rivalries and do not need to be enticed to view.  While the Bruins and Flyers had some nice rivalry periods they do not match the lifetime bitterness between the Habs and B’s. 

Novel idea - have the Bruin and Montreal meet someplace in upstate NH or Vermont for pond hockey.

The Habs were in the first “classic.” That’s why they’re not here.

In fact, the NHL is running out of Original Six teams to feature - after all, there are only six. And they aren’t going to waste Toronto and New York as visiting teams, as they’re likely to host their own “Classics.”

Bruins/Flyers was a fairly obvious rivalry to feature, remembering the Bobby Orr-anchored Boston teams who faced the Bobby Clarke-led teams of the Broad Street Bullies era. Plus they’re both US cities who still give a damn about their hockey teams even when they haven’t recently won a Cup.

For what it is worth - Ohio State played Wisconsin (I believe) outside as few years ago as well.