ICY TRADITION: Pond Hockey Tournament raises money for Spearfish hockey team

SPEARFISH, S.D. — Hockey is a big sport in this area and now Spearfish is looking to get its own amateur to join in on the fun.

On Saturday, members of the Northern Hills Hockey Association held a first ever pond hockey tournament to raise funds.

At the first annual Iron Creek Classic Pond Hockey Tournament, it was all about tradition.

“Hockey has its roots playing on a frozen lake somewhere, and so pond hockey has has kind of seen a renaissance,” said Mark Cazmer, the President of the Northern Hills Hockey Association.

11 teams played for hardware and to raise money to give spearfish its first amateur hockey team, the Northern Hills Chinook.

“Spearfish’s wanted to get a program going for a long time and this is just a way to try to raise some money to bring ice and a youth hockey program to the Northern Hills,” said Board Member Gregg Fullerton.

That battle to get their own team has continued with the fight for a building to call their own. And for these players and community, they’re passing on more than puck.

“I got a seven-year-old son and I would love for him to have the opportunity that I did,” said Garrett Petrik, the Vice President of the Northern Hills Hockey Association. “Playing hockey is just such a great sport that fit me and I just want to bring that up here for other kids so that they can experience the same things I did, so it means a lot to me.”