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Frozen Four Returning to Minnesota is a Mistake

By Aaron Goldschmidt

CHICAGO, IL - APRIL 08: The Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs and the Denver Pioneers skate during the 2017 NCAA Div I Men's Ice Hockey Championships at the United Center on April 8, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Chase Agnello-Dean/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
CHICAGO, IL - APRIL 08: The Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs and the Denver Pioneers skate during the 2017 NCAA Div I Men's Ice Hockey Championships at the United Center on April 8, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Chase Agnello-Dean/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) /
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College hockey was successful last year expanding to Chicago, but the sport can’t grow if the same cities continue hosting the Frozen Four.

In marketing class, students learn about the growth-share matrix. It’s a chart that helps companies analyze their product mix so they can allocate resources properly. One of the stages is called the “cash cow,” which describes a product that has a large market share in a slow growing industry. This can be applied to the Frozen Four and college hockey.

As everybody knows, the state of Minnesota has produced many of hockey’s greatest talents and still continues to do so.  If you asked a Minnesota native, they would probably admit high school hockey is the most popular in the state, followed by college and then the NHL.

Hosting college hockey’s Frozen Four in 2018 in St. Paul at the Xcel Energy Center is undoubtedly going to be a hit, especially with the University of Minnesota Gophers set to have a good season and the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs reaching the finals last year in Chicago.  But why is the Frozen Four returning to Minnesota when it was there recently in 2011? And why are the hosts in the next few years traditional hockey markets (Boston, Buffalo and Detroit)?

2017 Frozen Four in Chicago, Illinois

Last year was the first time I’ve ever attended a Frozen Four.  It was also my first year being a college hockey season ticket holder with the University of Denver.  I’m a big hockey fan. And with the Avalanche not doing so well in Denver, I decided to invest in DU hockey. I fell in love with the speed and physicality, as well as the preview of watching future NHL players.

The Pioneers had such a great year, I bought tickets to the tournament in Chicago. I did this hoping they would make the finals, and they did just that.  When I arrived to the United Center, the college atmosphere was everywhere.  Jerseys from every school imaginable were being worn around the hallways. Fight songs were blaring in every direction.

Having Notre Dame make it to the Frozen Four probably made all the difference in the Chicago market. Regardless, it seemed like Blackhawks crazed hockey fans in Chicago were at least willing to check out the event.

The United Center is the second largest hockey stadium in North America.  During the Frozen Four, Notre Dame had the most fans, seconded by Minnesota Duluth, then Denver and Harvard. Although it wasn’t as electric as a Blackhawks game, the level of competition didn’t disappoint.

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Despite minimal marketing and promotion in the city besides a few banners and some radio commercials, the tournament did pretty well in Chicago. If the University of Illinois puts together a Division I team, the turnout could be even larger. The lack of college hockey in Illinois has forced many of the state’s top hockey talents to go elsewhere in the midwest. An addition of an in-state team would spark more interest locally.

Alternatives

If the Frozen Four can become more of a destination tournament, locations like Nashville, New Orleans and even Las Vegas should be considered.  Although there aren’t popular or historic college hockey schools in the area, fans can use the tournament as a vacation of sorts. Fans saw during the NHL playoffs how crazy fans went for the Predators in Nashville.  There’s no doubt the atmosphere in Las Vegas or New Orleans would be the same, if not better.

I will be the first to admit that I was pretty worried the Frozen Four would be a dud in Chicago. It could have been.  If Notre Dame didn’t make it to Chicago, it may have been another story. However, it surprised everyone by being a huge success.

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Just because I think this year’s Frozen Four in St. Paul is a mistake doesn’t mean I’m not excited for it.  I got my first taste of the collegiate hockey style this year and plan on going again in the State of Hockey.  The Xcel Energy Center will probably have its roof blown off by the end of the weekend, but hopefully other markets can be introduced sooner rather than later.

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