The match was preceded on September 30, 2008 by an exhibition between host SC Bern and the New York Rangers, meant to commemorate the centennial of the Swiss Ice Hockey Association.However the additional game, the first ever between a Swiss team and an NHL team, ended up competing with the main event at the box office. With tickets steeply priced, neither game sold out and a number of Swiss fans favored the SC Bern game, which drew a significantly larger audience (16,022) than the actual Victoria Cup game. The New York Rangers defeated SC Bern in this game 8-1. The Rangers followed the Victoria Cup game with two NHL regular-season games against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Prague, Czech Republic, on October 4 and 5 at the O2 Arena. Both games were won 2–1 by the Rangers.