Puck Drops for 2nd Weekend of Fargo Pond Hockey Classic

FARGO, N.D. (KVRR)– The puck drops for the second weekend of The Fargo Pond Hockey Classic.

Organizers from Fargo Park District say it showcases the game the way nature intended it to be played on the pond!

“It is great to see such a great turnout; the event just keeps getting bigger and bigger which is exactly what we hope for,” says Stephanie D’Ambrosio, the Event Specialist at Fargo Park District.

“We heard about it through some friends. We’ve had some buddies play in it the last couple years, it’s just good to see the community get out here and put on some pond hockey.”

The Gold and Silver brackets feature 24 teams battling each other and mother nature for the Championship cup.

Players come from all over the nation to compete and their hockey backgrounds vary from youth stars to former professionals.

Teams compete on a smaller surface in pond hockey, the format is three vs three no goalies,

and the tournament allows six players on each squad.

Players say they’re excited to get back to the roots of the game, where the sport started on the pond outside.

“You can’t get much better than this besides the wind today, I mean this is where it all started, where we have the most fun. It’s just a group of guys playing together when you’re younger, but now we get to play in a nice organized tournament that Fargo Parks did a great job setting up here,” said Jacob Thiegles, a 3x Fargo Pond Hockey Classic champion.

“You know this is where it all started out here on the pond so it’s definitely different than, it’s not physical you’re not hitting each other out there. I guess it’s just more fun and guys are playing around for the love of the game,” says current pro hockey player and UND alum Jacob Thiegles.

“Well you’re out here in the cold there’s no heat or anything, it’s just the weather brings you and it’s just fun to be out here. I’d say traditional hockey it’s a lot more fundamental, pond hockey is a lot more creative, it’s a lot different from the flow of the game,” says another UND alum Dixon Powen.

Dixon played four years at UND and one year professionally in Finland.

Brody is a Fargo native and played at West Fargo and Jacob and his squad from Bismark are three time defending champs at the event, they even flew out a teammate from Michigan.

“First team we played was pretty good, they whipped our butts so we gotta regroup and get after the next one,” says Brody Shaerod.

“There’s a lot of good teams out here with a lot of good talent. I kind of came here expecting a little walk but our first game was a little tough, some good competition,” Dixon said.

“Competition is really increasing this year. The competition is at the highest level right now so it’s going to be a tough tournament but it should be a fun time,” says Shaerod.

Registration for next year’s Classic opens in August at http://fargoparks.com.