Gophers Venture Outdoors to Win
January 17, 2014
The first Hockey City Classic outdoor games held in Minnesota took place on January 17 at TCF Bank Stadium, a football venue, and saw the men’s and women’s Gopher teams in action against Ohio State and MSU-Mankato, respectively.
The Gopher men shut out the Buckeyes, 1-0, while the women did the same to Mankato, 4-0.
A crowd announced at 45,021 braved bone-chilling cold to attend the event, which was part carnival and part survival test. The skaters, however, suffered no apparent ill effects from the eight-degree temperature.
“It was nice,” said game-winning goaltender Adam Wilcox from South St. Paul, “I certainly didn’t overheat out there. And, it was good to feel a little breeze. Overall, I felt like a football player.”
Taylor Cammarata, Plymouth, Minn., scored the game’s only goal, assisted by Kyle Rau and Justin Holl.
In the women’s game, it was goals by Meghan Lorence, Rachel Bona, Sarah Davis, and Jordyn Burns that propelled the Gophers to victory.
“It was a great experience,” said Bona. “Not everyone can say they played outdoor hockey at TCF Bank Stadium. I was very grateful to be a part of it.”
The women scored a goal in the first period, two in the second, and a lone goal in the third. Meanwhile, goalie Amanda Leveille, Kingston, Ont., was pitching a shutout.
The Gopher women are part of the most successful program of its kind in hockey history, having lost a game earlier this season to snap an unbelievable 62-game winning streak.
As for the men, they continued on as the top team in the nation with the win. The Gopher’s 2013-14 record stands at 16-2-3.
The win over Ohio State turned out to be “the type of [outdoor] game we expected it to be,” said winning coach Don Lucia. “You’re going to have to chip and chase with not a lot of pretty plays. You have play a more cautious game.” In other words, rather dull hockey, compounded by the smaller, NHL-size temporary rink.
The Gopher men played outdoors last year against Wisconsin at Soldiers Field in Chicago. That game, which Minnesota lost, drew 52,051 paying customers.