Utica University to Hold First-Ever Hockey Skills Competition

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Utica University to Hold First-Ever Hockey Skills Competition

Women's Hockey and President Pfannestiel at Hockey Skills Competition Announcement 091423

“There’s no doubt it’s going to be an entertaining night with some good competition and I’m sure some good laughs.”

Men's Hockey and President Pfannestiel at Hockey Skills Competition Announcement 091423

Utica University Director of Athletics Dave Fontaine announced today that the Pioneers men’s and women’s hockey teams will host a preseason combined skills competition on Wednesday, September 27 at the Utica University Nexus Center. The event, which will kick off the University’s Presidential Inauguration Week festivities, begins at 7 p.m.

Admission is free, and doors open at 6:30 p.m.

The competition will feature popular events such as fastest skater, hardest shot, shooting accuracy, and breakaway challenges – and a few entertaining twists. Before and during the event, season tickets will be available for pickup, and fans will be able to meet the players throughout the course of the evening.

“We’ve never done anything like this before, so our players are excited, and we hope our fans are equally excited,” says women’s head coach Dave Clausen, whose team opens the season with its first-ever Kick-Off Tournament on October 27-28. The four-team tournament features Elmira, Sufflok, and Adrian, all of whom, like Utica, finished last season nationally ranked.

Gary Heenan talks with media at Hockey Skills Competition Announcement 091423

“We can’t wait to introduce this year’s team to our fans and celebrate the start to the season, and we’re really honored that President Pfannestiel has involved the hockey program and the local community in the activities around his inauguration,” says men’s head coach Gary Heenan. “There’s no doubt it’s going to be an entertaining night with some good competition and I’m sure some good laughs.”

The Pioneers men’s team will open its 2023-2024 season and home schedule on Friday, October 20 against the USA Hockey National Team Development Program Under-18 team. Like last season, the team will play 15 home games at the Adirondack Bank Center. Additionally, for the first time ever, the team will play in the Utica University Nexus Center on Friday, January 5 against Manhattanville and Friday, Jan. 19 against Lebanon Valley.

Tickets for the January 5 and January 19 games are $10. Season ticket holders will have an exclusive pre-sale window for purchasing tickets, beginning September 15, through the home opener on October 20.