'Hockey Day' in Michigan Set for February 16

It’s more popular than Football Night in America, and more anticipated than Hockey Night in Canada, yes the Central Collegiate Hockey Association announced this week that the third annual Hockey Day in Michigan will take place February 16, 2008. The CCHA, FSN Detroit, the Detroit Red Wings and the Michigan Amateur Hockey Association are teaming up to bring a coast-to-coast celebration of the sport of hockey to participants and fans across the state. This season, coast-to-coast doesn't just mean Muskegon to Port Huron, although the Fury and the Icehawks will be playing each other on the 17th. This year's event has been scheduled to coincide with USA Hockey's "Hockey Weekend Across America" February 15-17, 2008. Michigan has nearly 70,000 registered players, coaches and officials in addition to almost 5,000 teams registered with USA Hockey, which is the most of any state in the nation. Hockey Day in Michigan will feature contests, clinics and a pair of televised college hockey games, including Michigan State at Western Michigan and Lake Superior State at Michigan (7:35 PM), broadcast on FSN. In conjunction with HDIM, the CCHA will hold two "Have Fun, Play Hockey" Clinics at Novi Ice Arena and Suburban Ice - Macomb. These clinics give boys and girls ages 5-11 an opportunity to experience the fun of hockey for the first time at no cost. CCHA Commissioner Tom Anastos recognizes two main objectives for Hockey Day. "The first is to celebrate the passion and interest in the game. There are thousands of volunteers, coaches, officials, managers and players who give countless hours to the game and this is an opportunity to honor their contributions," said Anastos, recognized by The Hockey News as No. 68 on the list of the 100 Most Influential and Powerful people in the sport. "In addition, it's a great opportunity to bring special attention to the sport and raise its profile with the hopes that more people become aware of the sport and might consider trying it, watching it or simply becoming a little bit more aware of it." USA Hockey's "Hockey Weekend Across America" will feature various activities including "Wear Your Jersey to School Day" and "Celebrate Local Hockey Heroes Day." The weekend will culminate with the Labatt Blue/USA Hockey Pond Hockey Championships in Eagle River, Wisconsin. "Last year the state of Minnesota celebrated `Hockey Day,' and now this year, USA Hockey is launching a nationwide celebration of the game, which is exactly what we had hoped would happen when we launched the celebration back in 2006," said Anastos. "Our first two years of `Hockey Day' have been absolutely excellent and we expect the scale and profile of the celebration will just continue to grow each year. We encourage everyone to get involved and celebrate in their own way." To get involved or to have your event included in the list of happenings around the state on CCHA.com, please email hockeyday@ccha.com or call the CCHA Office at (248) 888-0600.