Hockey Day in Minnesota to Feature Current and Former Gophers

The annual event takes place in Shakopee this weekend

The 19th Annual Hockey Day in Minnesota festivities take place this weekend in Shakopee at Valleyfair amusement park. While several youth and high school games kick off on Wednesday and Thursday, the portion of the event that will feature the Minnesota Golden Gophers won’t kick off until Friday. On Friday it’s the Minnesota alums that will be features, while Saturday will showcase the current Golden Gopher women’s squad as they face Bemidji State on the HDM ice.

The first event featuring former Gophers on Friday will be a forum on Mental Health and Addiction in Sports at Shakopee High School. The event will begin at 11:30 AM and will feature guest speakers including Hockey Hall of Fame inductee, former Gopher star, and PWHL Minnesota General Manager Natalie Darwitz, former Minnesota and NHL defenseman Paul Martin, former Gopher and Minnesota Ms. Hockey winner Rhonda Englehart who is currently a scout for the Nashville Predators and former NHL star Mark Parrish amongst others. The panel will be moderated by podcast host Carly Zucker and Director of Psychology Dr. Heidi Bausch-Ryan. Admission is free.

At 5:30 PM an alumni hockey game between former stars from the University of Minnesota and other college hockey alums will take place. The event is hosted by Recovery Community Hockey, Shine A Light7 Foundation, and the University of Minnesota Discovery Team on Addiction, highlights the intersection of sports, recovery, and community. The rosters are stacked with tons of household names. Minnesota will have a pair of Hobey Baker winners skating for their squad in Brian Bonin and Jordan Leopold along with former NHL stars such as Thomas Vanek, Keith Ballard and Martin.

The Collegiate Alumni Stars will feature several notable names as well as former North Dakota and NHL star Zach Parise and UMD and NHL goalie Alex Stalock amongst others. The rosters are below.

Tickets are required to get into the Hockey Day Minnesota grounds for the game on Friday, and unfortunately are priced a bit steep at $59 each. You can purchase tickets on the HDM website, HERE. No TV or streaming will be available for Friday’s game.

Saturday it’s all about the current Gophers women’s squad. The Gophers will face off against Bemidji State in a WCHA game at 11:30 AM on Saturday. The game will count in the conference standings. Hockey Day Minnesota 2025 will mark the third outdoor game in program history. In the 2014 Hockey City Classic, Minnesota took down Minnesota State in a 4-0 game at Huntington Bank Stadium. Then, on Hockey Day Minnesota 2020, the Maroon and Gold notched a 2-1 victory over Ohio State at Parade Stadium in downtown Minneapolis. Tickets to Saturday’s game are available at the link above and are an even more steep $79 each. If that’s too rich for your blood, the Gopher game will air live on Fan Duel Sports North along with the rest of Saturday’s Hockey Day Minnesota coverage.