Report: North Dakota, Minnesota plan to play college hockey game in Vegas
We’re not sure if the NHL will be in Las Vegas, but it appears college hockey will be playing a game here in 2018.
The Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald reported Monday that the University of North Dakota and the University of Minnesota have agreed to play at game on Oct. 27, 2018, at the Orleans Hotel’s ice arena.
The game will pit former rivals of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association as both schools annually compete for the NCAA’s Frozen Four. North Dakota two years ago left for the National College Hockey Conference while Minnesota moved to the Big Ten’s newly formed hockey league.
The Orleans arena, where the minor-league Las Vegas Wranglers used to play, can host about 7,700 fans. The event would be a U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game.
In recent years, North Dakota has played a number of neutral site games, including against Clarkson in Winnipeg’s MTS Centre, an outdoor game against Nebraska-Omaha at T.D. Ameritrade Park and have scheduled a game against Boston College in 2016 New York City’s Madison Square Garden.
The North Dakota program’s biggest benefactor was Ralph Engelstad, the late Las Vegas developer who paid for the construction of Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks.
Bill Bradley is sports editor of the Review-Journal. He can be reached at bbradley@reviewjournal.com or 702-397-2909. Follow him on Twitter: @billbradleyLV