It’s hardly a secret that Minnesota has long been a hockey Mecca. Many consider the State of Minnesota to be the heart of the sport, flourishing at all levels.
Long winters and plentiful outdoor ice in northern places like Eveleth, International Falls, Roseau, Grand Rapids, Duluth, and Hibbing created many generations of college and professional stars and continue to this day to feed scores of players into all levels of hockey.
Through the years, Minnesota has ranked first in the nation in terms of the number of players registered at USA Hockey Eight years ago, Minnesota had over 54,000 players registered (the number is probably way higher). That number becomes even more impressive upon the realization that high school hockey players are technically not affiliated with USA Hockey so that number could be a few thousand higher even. The number two state was Michigan (in 2014) with slightly more than 50,000. The staggering statistic here is that Minnesota has considerably more hockey participation despite Michigan having nearly double the population.
That’s where the Becker/Big Lake Hockey Association (BBLHA) steps in. For years, they’ve been budgeting, bankrolling and fundraising to bring a new hockey arena to the area of Big Lake and Becker. Amazingly, the BBLHA is one of the largest associations in the state of Minnesota that doesn’t have a home rink. It is the only one in District 10, and in the Twin Cities surrounding area.
The bottom line is that they (and the kids) need a rink.
Currently there are over 120 kids that play hockey in the association, not including any of the high school players. As of now, Becker/Big Lake travels to Princeton to play their hockey games.
“Our association has approximately 120 kids, and these families drive to Princeton a couple times a week for games and practices “ BBLHA President Allen Gessell said. “Many times these families go out to eat, or get gas, car wash, grocery shop while they are in town, spending money in the Princeton area.”
Not only is an arena needed for the kids, but also to financially grow and support the Becker and Big Lake communities.
“Having an ice arena in town would be beneficial to other youth sports programs as well with off season training and meetings for various organizations,” Gessell continued.
“Our hockey association and especially our younger coaches are putting a lot of time and effort to develop these kids,” said BBLHA Vice President Dave Nelson. “A new arena would attract more kids to play, which would help with the ultimate goal of creating a successful, sustainable hockey program that the community can be proud of.”
As new families relocate to Becker and Big Lake, more and more kids are moving into the area looking to play sports. Unfortunately, when parents are asked if they want to get their kids into hockey, the overwhelming response is “we don’t want to travel to Princeton.”
“The parents deserve a lot of credit for sticking with our hockey program without an arena for so long, but mostly the players deserve a place they can be proud of and call home,” says Nelson.
“It’s hard, because there is a great system in place for developing the young skaters that join,” said one of the hockey coaches. “We (coaches) are putting in a lot of time to see these kids succeed. Our goal is to make it to the state tournament, and to create a program that this community can rally behind and be part of. It’s challenging, however, to develop a successful program when you are handcuffed with limited participation from kids.”
The BBLHA now owns land in Big Lake which sits just to the east of The Buff off of Hwy. 10. It’s a perfect location for an arena and is easily accessible just off the highway with neighboring restaurants, gas stations and stores.
Currently, The BBLHA has charitable gambling (pull tabs, bingo, etc.) at the Third Rail to help raise funds to get the arena built.
“The Third Rail was generous enough to let us in for charitable gambling,” said Nelson. “And I think it’s been a huge success on both ends.”
The association is looking to expand to more locations as well.
“The more money that we can bring in, the sooner that this arena can be built and give back to the bars and restaurants in the community with customers,” one of the association’s members said.
Basic plans of the arena and 3D renderings are also finished, so the process is getting closer. But the association needs the public’s help.
The Becker Big Lake Ice Association will be starting a capital campaign very soon to raise the funds needed to build this community arena.
“If anyone is willing to help, it would be greatly appreciated,” the association stated.
The city of Big Lake has been extremely helpful in helping with the process of bringing hockey to the area as well. As of right now, though, the plan is that the arena will be privately ran.
“Everyone knows around this community and surrounding hockey associations that there is a major need for an arena, but it’s the kids that play this sport they deserve it the most,” said a BBLHA member.
