For one day next winter, Camp Randall Stadium will be turned into a hockey heaven.
The University of Wisconsin Athletic Department announced Friday that both the men’s and women’s hockey teams will host a game at Camp Randall Feb. 6, 2010. The men will face off against the Michigan Wolverines, while the women’s team will take on the Bemidji State Beavers.
“For college hockey to be brought to Camp Randall is extremely exciting for us and our programs,” Associate Athletic Director Sean Frazier said. “A lot of preparation has gone into it.”
The Camp Randall Hockey Classic will mark the second time in four years the Badger men’s team will play an outdoor game in the state of Wisconsin. On Feb. 11, 2006, UW faced off against Ohio State in the Frozen Tundra Hockey Classic at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, a game Wisconsin won 4-2.
“Three years ago, we had the opportunity to play at Lambeau, and it was an event that the players at that time will remember for the rest of their lives,” Wisconsin head coach Mike Eaves said.
Senior co-captain Ben Street is one of just a handful of current Badgers to have played in the Lambeau game. Having missed most of this season with a knee injury, Street will be taking a medical redshirt, meaning he will have the chance to return next year and be a part of another outdoor game.
“To be able to play in two games outdoors, it’s going to be awesome. I’m really lucky,” Street said. “I think it will be really cool to have it on campus. We’re always, I think, a little bit jealous when we wake up on Saturday mornings and see the march of people in red down to Camp Randall.”
“I get chills down my neck when I hear about playing in Camp Randall,” junior co-captain Blake Geoffrion said. “Possibly 80,000 people cheering us on out there, so it’s going to be unbelievable. I can’t wait to experience it.”
Both Street and Geoffrion hope the hockey game will bring with it a similar Camp Randall atmosphere that Badger fans experience on football Saturdays.
“We were joking earlier, maybe we should find a way go into overtime so they can do ‘Jump Around,'” Street said. “I really don’t know what to expect. It’s going to be a really exciting event. … I remember the Lambeau game; you’re kind of numb in the first period, just kind of taking everything in. I’m sure it will be like that. There will be a lot of red in the crowd.”
Some of the logistics of hosting the game — such as parking and rink maintenance — are still being worked out, but Frazier remains confident the pieces will all fall into place by next February.
“One of the biggest concerns was can Camp Randall hold up to a game in February?” Frazier said. “We’re still in the final process of that. We’ve completed the majority of the hurdles. … I definitely give credit to our facilities folks who have really gone in detail about what this would look like in playing a game here.”
Game times have not yet been announced, but the women’s game will be played first, followed by the men’s game.
“The fact that they’re having a women’s outdoor game will help market women’s athletics and especially ice hockey,” Eaves said. “To have them combined in this venue is just a tremendous opportunity for all of us.”
“It is very exciting to be playing at the stadium, especially for women’s hockey,” UW women’s head coach Mark Johnson said in a statement. “We try to give student-athletes the chance to experience something different and this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
The rink will be positioned in the middle of the field, with the ends stretching to about the 17-yard lines. Ticket prices for the public will be $25, while students can purchase tickets for $10 starting April 6.
