NE Pond Hockey Classic Gets Ready To Celebrate 10 Years

In February of 2010, Scott Crowder’s dream of a Pond Hockey Tournament in the Northeast came to life when the puck dropped to officially open the first New England Pond Hockey Classic (NEPHC) on Meredith Bay.
Next weekend, with tournament play beginning early on Friday Feb. 1st, what has now become possibly New Hampshire’s most popular winter event, returns to Meredith for its Tenth Anniversary. It is now officially known as the “Labatt Blue New England Pond Hockey Classic.”
Seventy-seven teams competed in that first tournament (with almost 50 more on the waiting list). This year 280 teams (2,200 players) will be traveling to the Lakes Region to compete making NEPHC one of the most sought after Pond Hockey Tournaments in the country, with teams flying in to compete from all over North America.

“It started as a small concept and it is great to see how it has grown over the past ten years,” said Crowder. “The teams and the town have really embraced it.”
Scott Crowder grew up in a hockey family. His father, Bruce Crowder, played four seasons in the NHL as a forward for the Boston Bruins and Pittsburgh Penguins and later a college hockey coach.
Scott graduated from UMass/Amherst in 2009, where he played hockey and graduated with Bachelor of Science Degrees in both Sport Management and Marketing.
After college, Scott trained all summer to play in the Eastern Professional Hockey League.
“I made it through training camp and then I was let go,” said Crowder. “After that I said to myself, ‘What can I do?’”
Scott saw that Pond Hockey tournaments were popping up in the Mid-Western United States and Canada.
“These tournaments caught my attention and instantly became an interest of mine. Wanting to compete in one, I began searching for tournaments to play in: Wisconsin, had one; Minnesota, had a couple; Michigan, had one; Ontario, had a few; even the Canadian Maritimes, offered one,’ said Crowder. “I found a number of tournaments but what I didn’t find was one here in the Northeast. How was it that one of the most passionate hockey communities in the world didn’t have one of these events? Hockey players had to fly to these other locations just to experience a pond hockey tournament. I didn’t think this was right and instantly began conceptualizing what a tourney in New England would look like.”
Scott had always loved to play pond hockey and had spent his summers in the Lake Winnipesaukee area.
“Lucky for me, the location chose itself. As I was driving my boat into Meredith Bay on Lake Winnipesaukee where I had spent my summers since I was ten years old, I had a vision of the lake frozen, spotted with ice fisherman and bob houses. Hockey players gliding across the frozen waters with the town of Meredith as its backdrop,” said Crowder. “It was perfect. A summer resort town, with the amenities and infrastructure to accommodate crowds. Lodging establishments, restaurants and bars all well known and within close proximity to the large hockey population of New England. There were guys from Massachusetts and other places in New England traveling to pond hockey tournaments in places like Wisconsin, Minnesota and Canada. Why not have one here?”

Pond hockey was designed to be played on a natural frozen body of water as opposed to an indoor rink. The outdoor rink is about half the size of a standard NHL rink. The top of the goal is much lower and there is no goalie and no referees, though there are officials on hand for disputes.
Teams are comprised of six to eight players depending on the division. There are four players from each team on the ice at a time. Teams are guaranteed four games (two on Friday, two on Saturday with the playoffs on Sunday). Games are fifteen minute halves with five minute intermissions.
More importantly, it is really played for fun and that is the attitude that the teams who come to play embrace.
“It really portrays hockey in its purest form,” said Crowder.

With the tenth anniversary next week, Crowder and his crew have been hard at work preparing for next weekend. Not just the ice and the rinks, but also the other events and activities that have grown along with the event.
“First I need to thank the many local and national sponsors that have stuck with us over the years,” said Crowder. “Without their participation none of this would have been possible.”
Home base for the tournament will now be the Winnipesaukee Ballroom at Church Landing in Meredith where there will also be a 10th Anniversary celebration on Saturday night.
There will also be a larger stage set for music entertainment during the tournament provided by the Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion.
Fundraising for great causes will also be back for the weekend. Special commemorative pint glasses being sold to benefit the Meredith Fire Department (which can be used for discounts at local participating restaurants). Also the “Ultimate Hockey Dinner” at the Ballroom, featuring the Stanley Cup, will be served to the team who has the highest bid with the money going to Restore Sports, a non-profit that ‘promote(s) sports in a manner that embraces access, opportunity, and affordability while giving new life to equipment that has helped build its foundation.’ (They are also happy to donate money to any non-profit organization whose members volunteer to work at the tournament.)
All in all, the Labatt Blue New England Pond Hockey Classic has really become more of an event than a tournament.
“No one is really coming here to win a Pond Hockey Championship,” said Crowder. “People are coming here to have a good time.”