Verdict on Hockey City Classic: Great Experience, Disappointing Outcome

The #2 ranked Gophers (20-6-4, 12-6-4 WCHA) took on #18 Wisconsin (13-10-7, 10-7-7 WCHA) this afternoon at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois in the Hockey City Classic. Following a 3-2 win in Madison on Friday night, Minnesota fell to the Badgers by the same score this afternoon in the matinee of the hockey double header that saw Notre Dame sneak by Miami 2-1.

Here is what I saw.

* Play was in the Wisconsin end a majority of the game. The Badgers got their first goal in the second period, while getting their first real pressure of the game. They followed that up with two more goals in the span of a little over three minutes, which ended up doing the Gophers in.

* Ice was not ideal for the Gophers and Wisconsin, but better than what Miami & Notre Dame had to work with. The sun went behind the stands right about the time the puck was dropped, which helped. Still, you could see the skating was not as confident as it is on an indoor rink, puck handling was almost non existent, and the ice looked really rough, particularly in the south end of the stadium. Ultimately, the Gophers weren't using shabby ice as an excuse, and the Badgers were playing on the same rink, so…

* Minnesota was well represented in the stands, but no Goldie, no band, and no cheerleaders for the Gophers. That was a real disappointment. In fairness, nobody brought their cheerleaders. But Miami (Ohio), Notre Dame and Wisconsin all brought their bands, and Miami (Ohio) and Wisconsin dragged their mascots along. I think we should expect more, being the "State of Hockey". We should have made more of an effort to overshadow, or at least match what the other schools had. It was good to see the fan support though, considering Wisconsin is only a couple of hours away.

* You could see the disappointment on the faces of the players after the game in the bowels of Soldier Field, but the consensus seemed to be that, despite the outcome, everyone had a good time here. In the post game press conference, Don Lucia, Zach Budish & Nate Schmidt lauded the people involved here in Chicago (InterSport ), who put on a great event. As the players and coaches kept heaping praise on Intersport, I couldn't help but wonder how much of that was "brown nosing" in an attempt to lure InterSport into looking in the direction of TCF Stadium next winter. Coach Lucia always heaps praise on the opponent, so it's probably just him being polite again. And as goes the Coach, so go his players. Another point of pride for the Gopher Hockey program, in my opinion.


Post game comments to come.


The Gophers will take on the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs next weekend at Mariucci Arena. Game time is 7:00 PM (Central) both nights, with the Friday night game being broadcast on Fox Sports North PLUS, and Saturday's game being carried by the Big Ten Network.

Saw on Twitter somebody mention that we didn't bring the band and Goldy because it was still considered a Wisconsin home game. Any truth to that?

If not, I agree - why wouldn't you send the band down. That's odd and inexcusable to turn down that kind of exposure.

Here are the post game comments from Don Lucia, Zach Budish & Nate Schmidt.

Minnesota Head Coach Don Lucia:

Regarding the game… "It was obviously a great experience to be a part of a game like this. It’s something I know our players will remember the rest of their lives. But, like I told them, you remember it better if you win. Unfortunately that didn’t happen tonight. I thought we came on and played a very good first period and then ultimately the second period cost us tonight"

Regarding the game comparing to the NCAA tournament… "Four quality teams here. It reminds you of that type of an (NCAA) environment and this was a good experience for our players"

Regarding Soldier Field… "The weather cooperated. It wasn’t that cold. The guys had a great time. Last night, I had to get them off the ice. They probably would have stayed and practiced for a couple hours if they could have"

Regarding the event as a whole… "The experience was terrific. The guys did a great job and came out, and ultimately didn’t win, so that’s the disappointing part. But all-in-all, just a quality experience for the players involved. And I think the fans had a good time. And that is what to me, this game was a little bit about the event to experience something like that. It was two thumbs up for everything (holding two thumbs up). The organizing committee did a fantastic job and it really felt like an NCAA environment the way it was handled"


Zach Budish:

Regarding the event as a whole… "Like coach said, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us. We want to thank the people who put this event on. It was a great experience for us, but obviously frustrating to come off with a loss. Like coach said, it’s a lot better when you win. We were treated very well when we came here. The second we got to the hotel, there was someone there to greet us and the whole staff put on a great outing for us as players and I’m sure the fans had a good time. It was a good crowd and a lot of our fans from Minnesota made the trip, so obviously it’s frustrating for us to not get them the win when they traveled six, seven hours. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, big stage and we just fell short"

Regarding the game… "Obviously it’s disappointing to lose, but we talked about it last night as a team that this is a big stage and big event and you get treated well. A lot of attention. It’s a Sunday game so not a lot of college games were today, so I’m sure people were tuning in across the country. It is what it’s like when you get down to the NCAA tournament and I think it’s a good learning experience for us. We have to learn to play a full sixty minute game and I think we got away from our game a little bit there in the second. Give Wisconsin credit. They went to the net and they made plays whether it was off their stick or whatever"


Nate Schmidt:

Regarding the event as a whole… "I hadn’t been to Soldier Field before and it was my first experience here. It’s a great venue. It was unbelievable. You could feel the fans on top of you from however far away they were. It was a good atmosphere, a great event and we appreciate our time here. They put on a really good event for us. Just tough that it came out the way it did"

I can ask. I don't know if I'm buying that though, because the other three schools brought their bands and their mascot.

Gopher Bandanna Guy said:

Saw on Twitter somebody mention that we didn't bring the band and Goldy because it was still considered a Wisconsin home game. Any truth to that?

If not, I agree - why wouldn't you send the band down. That's odd and inexcusable to turn down that kind of exposure.

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An awesome viewing experience! Minnesota just got things going a little too late, plus I think it's safe to say Wilcox wasn't his sharpest yesterday (for good reason).

I had a great time at Soldier but pissed to see that rat in a popcorn box win. Wilcox was fighting it more than usual.

Funniest moment was the most likely intoxicated Badger fan running on the field and eluding many security guards with stiff arms and head fakes. Big boy could move a little. Hope he had fun at Cook Co!

Loved the jerseys and the, IMO, lax security that allowed the easy passage of beverage enhancers and seat hopping.

GopherState said:

I had a great time at Soldier but pissed to see that rat in a popcorn box win. Wilcox was fighting it more than usual.

Funniest moment was the most likely intoxicated Badger fan running on the field and eluding many security guards with stiff arms and head fakes. Big boy could move a little. Hope he had fun at Cook Co!

Loved the jerseys and the, IMO, lax security that allowed the easy passage of beverage enhancers and seat hopping.

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Believe it or not, that dude was not from Wisconsin. He was a Miami fan. I had to pull out the binoculars to verify the jersey, and when I did, I made the comment that I was shocked that dude could make it around 3/4 of the field like that eluding security. Sort of had that Bluto from Animal House look about him. That was a highlight yesterday for sure.

I hear Jack Daniels in Hot Chocolate is surprisingly tasty.

Really, a Miami fan. I guess that makes sense since their game was over.

Crown neat (semi chilled bc of the elements) and Jameson Boilermakers. The guys next to us brought in a 12 pack of Rolling Rock cans in their jackets. It was ridiculous... Not even a token pat down.

The experience on TV was rough. The announcers were terrible, I couldn't believe they didn't even know the rules.

The game was a fun experience. However, it was terrible as far as being able to actually watch hockey. I would seem to make more since to put the rink on one end of the stadium at at least make the game visible from some of the seats.

I was impressed by the number of Minnesota fans that made the trip, given that Minneapolis is much further from Chicago than the other schools that participated. I do think they should rethink the idea of playing the game with four visiting teams. It was bit lame how the stadium was never more than a third full.

Gopher Bandanna Guy said:

Saw on Twitter somebody mention that we didn't bring the band and Goldy because it was still considered a Wisconsin home game. Any truth to that?

If not, I agree - why wouldn't you send the band down. That's odd and inexcusable to turn down that kind of exposure.

Click to expand...

I asked someone within the Gopher Hockey circle today why Goldy and the U of M band did not make the trip. The response I got was not definitive, but the person I spoke to believed it was for financial reasons.

Twynntown said:

I asked someone within the Gopher Hockey circle today why Goldy and the U of M band did not make the trip. The response I got was not definitive, but the person I spoke to believed it was for financial reasons.

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It's always financial reasons. It seems like every school in America can send their band and spirit squad somewhere, but the U never has money for anything.

Yeah, I really don't get it. It should have been cheap enough to throw a band on the bus and head home after the game. Maybe not ideal for the band, but I'm sure you could have talked them into making the trip.