New Year's Day outdoor hockey

[cjkalt]

ESPN - Report: NHL to announce Blackhawks-Red Wings game at Wrigley - NHL

This will be awesome for the fans of chicago... i hope that they do one in Fenway some day

[henks]

this is cool. i didn't get to watch the game last year, but i heard the turnout was awesome. it kinda surprises me though that the state of hockey (mn) hasn't hosted one yet.

[cjkalt]

idk about the state of hockey, your state is good but its not the undisputed hub of hockey, massachusetts is right there on all levels, MN might have better national hockey recognition but Mass is right there too

[henks]

but minnesota is known as the state of hockey

[HollywoodLeo]

Massachusetts? The Bruins?

Minnesota, Michigan, and New York have a claim as the "state of hockey" long before Massachusetts.

You have the Red Sox, Patriots, and Celtics all doing very well, with 2 of the 3 having one of the richest histories in their sports, do you really need to have a little brother syndrome with the NHL?

[henks]

Eveleth, Minnesota has been designated "The Capital of American Hockey"

US Hockey Hall of Fame Website

[cjkalt]

Massachusetts? The Bruins?

Minnesota, Michigan, and New York have a claim as the "state of hockey" long before Massachusetts.

You have the Red Sox, Patriots, and Celtics all doing very well, with 2 of the 3 having one of the richest histories in their sports, do you really need to have a little brother syndrome with the NHL?

I think Henks will agree with me that NHL hockey isn't the be all end all. HS and college hockey has a much better quality of play.

When it comes to college hockey Boston has the national champion eagles and other elite teams such as the BU Terriers, and Harvard

And for HS hockey Massachusetts has some of the best leagues in the country, trivia question which high school holds the record for most draft picks in one draft?

That HS isn't in Minn.
That HS isn't in Michigan
and its certainly not in New York (btw...New York are u kidding me... Rangers and Islanders and your talking about NY hockey)

the HS is St. Sebastian's of the ISL league in Needham MA, one of the top prep teams in the country... and their top players are starting to hit NHL rosters.

Henks I agree your known as the hockey state, but MA is right there along with Michigan somewhat

[henks]

I'll admit, BC and BU are stellar hockey teams, but you have to look at the overall spectrum of it. Just because one high school has the most draft pics doesn't look past the fact that schools shut down for the state hockey tournament...most times getting a better attendance than some pro teams. Then look at the number of D-1 College hockey teams in MN, you have U of M, UMD, SCSU, and MN State. And just becuase the Stars left MN doesn't mean that the people of MN no longer wanted hockey. That man (Norm Green) was and still is probably the most hated person by sports fans in Minnesota. When we got hockey back, it breathed new life into the state. The Wild have sold out every game since the franchise's inception.

[cjkalt]

i think we are agreeing henks...Minn is #1 but my point is Mass isn't a extremely distant 2nd

[henks]

oh, yeah they're not a distant second by any means...but it's not the #1 thing that they are known for is all i was trying to say i guess.

[cjkalt]

yep...cheers for agreeing

[Foster]

Gonna be a great game if all things hold up. Chicago is on the upswing, and the Wings are well, the Wings. Wrigley's nice, but I kinda wonder what it would be like at Soldier. Hope the ice is in good shape too, and I think that the time they have to prepare the field, and get the ice in would help. Get it in sooner rather than later, and let the ice makers some time to work with it. At minimum a couple of weeks.

Nice to see you guys come back together too.