“The Wild creative team did an amazing job capturing what makes Warroad, Warroad. We are truly grateful for the support and look forward hosting Minnesota Hockey Day in January 2024!”

Hockeytown USA

This past July, shortly before the tee-off at the annual Warroad Celebrity Golf tournament, the Minnesota Wild, along with Bally Sports North and Minnesota Hockey, announced Warroad will host Hockey Day Minnesota 2024, presented by UnitedHealthcare.

Warroad’s festivities will be part of a day-long television event broadcast on Bally Sports North, designed to celebrate the game from peewees to pros. Proceeds of the event will benefit Warroad’s Area Hockey Association in an effort to grow the game through youth hockey.

Get Your #HDM24 Gear

Click here to get your Hockey Day Minnesota merchandise.

What You Need To Know

1. What is Hockey Day Minnesota?
   • Hockey Day Minnesota originated in 2007 by the Minnesota Wild to celebrate the game that has made Minnesota the “State of Hockey”. It is produced in partnership with Bally Sports North, Minnesota Hockey, and a local community that serves as the host each year. Previous locations include Baudette Bay (2007, 2008), Phalen Park (2009), Hermantown (2010), Moorhead (2011), Minnetonka (2012), Grand Rapids (2013), Elk River (2014), Saint Paul (2015), Duluth (2016), Stillwater (2017), St. Cloud (2018), Bemidji (2019), Minneapolis (2020), Guidant John Rose MN Oval (2021), Mankato (2022) and White Bear Township (2023). 
     
2. What is a Local Organization Committee (LOC) and who is involved?
   • A LOC is the local planning team responsible for designing a Hockey Day Minnesota experience that is unique to the host community, highlights the sport of hockey in a way that honors traditions and showcases how hockey can impact lives locally, statewide, and beyond. There are some base requirements that must be met, and the LOC works very closely with the Minnesota Wild and Bally Sports North to ensure we remain in alignment as planning gets underway.
   • Members of the Warroad LOC include Tad Palmquist, co-chair; Brenda Baumann, co-chair; Brian Erickson (Finance & Sponsorships), Michele Jackson (Project Manager), Jared Olafson (Grounds and Logistics), Jude Boulianne (Grounds and Logistics), Meg Comstock (Village Experience), Jessie Anthony (Hospitality), Mark Chamernick (Volunteers), Darrell “Son” Shaugabay (Native American Heritage), and Sarah Homme (Village Experience-Riverbend Skate Path).
     
3. Why is the announcement made so far in advance?
   • Hosting Hockey Day takes an incredible amount of planning. With the support of the Minnesota Wild and Bally Sports North, we were able to announce early so that we could plan openly and start to establish relationships with key vendors and suppliers, secure sponsorships, create needed infrastructure and get the community involved and excited! We are grateful to the Minnesota Wild and Bally Sports North to see the benefits of early announcements.
     
4. Where will the site be located for Hockey Day Minnesota 2024?
   • The site for Hockey Day Minnesota will be the Warroad athletic complex along Elk Street. We are working on a master plan with all the essential stakeholders and know it will take a few revisions before it is final.    
   • When selecting the site, we toured several potential sites with the Wild and Bally Sports North including the Point. Multiple factors played into a collective decision to use the athletic complex:
   • The athletic complex has much of the fencing, multiple access points, lighting, and parking options that are required for an expected attendance of between 5,000 – 10,000 people based on previous HDMs.
   • The proximity of the school and Gardens/Olympic arenas will be helpful as staging areas for Bally Sports North and other media and support staff.
   • Bally Sports North has extensive requirements for access to both power sources and high-speed internet connections, both of which have much closer access points at the athletic complex.
   • One of the key background shots that Bally Sports North wants for the event is the Warroad water tower with the iconic hockey sticks. They indicated that they will be able to get this shot with their booms, etc. from the athletic complex.
   • The Athletic complex is much closer to many of the lodging options.
   • One of the key requirements is that we use artificial ice to prevent cracks from too hot or in our case too cold of a rink
     
5. Who decides the hockey matchups for Hockey Day?
   • Game matchups are determined by the Minnesota Wild, Bally Sports North and Minnesota Hockey. The Local Organizing Committee can provide input and make recommendations. The official invitations to hockey teams will be made by the Minnesota Wild and are announced to the public six months prior to the event.
     
6. What is it going to take to pull this off?
   • Hosting Hockey Day Minnesota in 2024 will be the largest event that the community of Warroad has experienced. It will take a tremendous amount of effort. The LOC plans to reach out to as many local service and hockey organizations as possible to gather ideas and seek support. It will take a village to pull this off, we have a great one!
     
7. How can I get involved?
   • We welcome all that wish to be involved! Contact Mark Chamernick, volunteer coordinator Mark_Chamernick@Warroad.k12.mn.us.
     
8. Where can I get more information?
   • For the short term, please feel free to contact any one of Local Organizing Committee members or email whockeytownusa@gmail.com. As more information becomes available, we will be posting locally to the Warroad Hockey website and utilizing the Warroad Hockeytown USA Facebook, Instagram, and twitter accounts as needed.
   • The Minnesota Wild has established dedicated website www.hockeydaymn.com where most of the official communications will be housed. Right now, it is focused on HDM2023, supporting White Bear Lake Township. We will let you know when information about HDM2024 in Warroad goes live.