At its core, hockey is really about tossing a puck around on the ice with some friends in the winter — and one NHL team went back to their roots and did exactly that in Canada yesterday. 

The Pittsburgh Penguins held an outdoor hockey practice at a rink just outside Calgary Wednesday, and photos and videos from the day show just how pure and beautiful it really was. 

Thank you to John Gabert and the Valley Ridge Community Association for hosting our outdoor practice this afternoon. What a beautiful place to play hockey. pic.twitter.com/ulBxV92RD7

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 18, 2019

"The calm blue sky. The cold, crisp air. Youthful exuberance. Teammates that become best friends. Whether you've played one or 1,000 games, there's always something special about moments like this," the official Pittsburgh Penguins Twitter account wrote along with a photo of some of the players. 

Some more pics from today’s scrimmage outside in Calgary pic.twitter.com/INvFfRocXI

— Josh Getzoff (@PensJG) December 18, 2019

The weather in Calgary was hovering just above zero yesterday, but that sure didn't stop the players from hitting the ice. 

Many of them took to social media to post photos and videos from what seemed like quite a magical day, with some of them pointing out that days like this are what hockey is really about. 

"Sippin syrup & playing hockey in the land of the polite #greatwhitenorth," player Joe Blandisi wrote on Instagram. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Joseph Blandisi (@joeblandisi) on Dec 18, 2019 at 12:57pm PST

"Back to basics," the official Pittsburgh Penguins Instagram account wrote. They also referred to the practice as "Hockey in its purest form." 

View this post on Instagram

Back to basics.

A post shared by Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) on Dec 18, 2019 at 3:32pm PST

Some of Calgary's first responders even stopped to watch the practice. 

Some of Calgary’s first responders have stopped by to check out the @penguins outdoor skate. Awesome atmosphere here pic.twitter.com/2dLtuMCYWi

— Josh Getzoff (@PensJG) December 18, 2019

The Pittsburgh Penguins are set to play their next game against the Edmonton Oilers tomorrow at 9 p.m.