For all you hockey fans who are local to the NRV/southwest VA, our local minor league team just earned their second consecutive berth in the SPHL championship!
Dawgs Avenge 2022 Finals Loss In 5-3 Game Three Win At Peoria ⭐Congratulations to the @Peoria_Rivermen on a great season and an amazing series. 👏Recap: https://t.co/ctyF8aIkwR pic.twitter.com/y3U4Dwa6tQ— Rail Yard Dawgs (@RailYardDawgs) April 24, 2023
I went to my first ever hockey game with my wife and cousin back in January and fell in love! I had never really paid much attention to hockey before now, but I can't get enough! Definitely recommend trying to catch one of the Roanoke games in the championship if you're able! GO DAWGS 🐶🏒
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My first live hockey was the Roanoke Express in the mid 90s. They used to pack the Civic Center before ownership issues and playoff flavors "killed the town." I am glad to see Roanoke hockey coming back to prominenece. This is especially impressive because their best player, Travis Broughman (a Richmond native), got called up to the ECHL around a third of the way into the season.
Henrico County is supposed to break ground on a new hockey arena (17,000 capacity) around the Paraham Road intersection. Their intent is to get an ECHL team. With the Norfolk ECHL team floundering, let's hope that Roanoke's ownership moves up when Richmond starts operations and we can reinvigorate minor league hockey in Virginia (especially with youth programs in NOVA and Richmond really taking off!)
Also, the New York Rangers top defensive prospect, Zac Jones, is a Richmond kid and a product of the Richmond Generals youth league. He was the Rangers third pair left defenseman back at the begining of the season, but was sent to their Hartford minor league team when they brought in Ben Harpur and Nikko Mikkola. He was the first Virginia born person to play in the NHL since Eric Weinrich (who was born in Roanoke.)
Love to see the hockey chat on TKP! My son plays youth travel hockey in the Richmond Generals organization. Lots of fun. Roanoke is definitely one of their biggest rivals. Really good, really aggressive youth teams.
Here's hoping that they finally bring higher level professional hockey back to Richmond! I love the idea, but I will believe it when I see it!
I hope they follow through. Ground is supposed to be broken on the new arena in 2024. I hope they follow through. The tougher part will be finding the franchise to move here. I doubt ECHL expands.
The Carolina Hurricanes just lost their AHL affiliate, as the Chicago Wolves decided to go independent. If the arena was ready, Richmond would have been a primo location for them, but alas, the timing doesn't line up.
I remember the Express, never went to a game but I knew they existed!
That's really cool all the ties to VA hockey, I had no idea. It would be cool to see the Dawgs move up a league, I hope the fan base stays supportive. Those games are LOUD when the fans get involved.
I went to a Roanoke vs Richmond playoff game in the 90's. Those teams hated each other! They dropped to puck to start the game and there was a fight. Puck sitting on the ice and the players are going at it. Awesome stuff!
Glad to see hockey doing well in the NRV. To echo the OP's sentiment, I really think Hockey might be the only sport where watching in person is superior to watching on TV.
Obviously going to games is fun for all sports, but there's usually a lot that you miss in person that TV does a good job picking up. Hockey always feels like the opposite to me. On TV it can sometimes seem meandering and slow, but in person you really notice how intentional every movement is and the action feels way more intense.
Second this. And as a side note, my wife doesn't really like to watch live sports. She'll go to football games and have a great time, but it's not her first choice. Since taking her to these hockey games, she LOVES it. She actually has requested and looked forward to going each game. It's been a fun time all around!
Hockey brings people together.
Forecheck, back check, pay check! Celly bro!
Definitely brings people together.
Bought tickets for me and the boys to Game 1 for the Checkers and Bears.
https://www.hockeytv.com/team/191642/upcoming
It's being streamed. Just found this.
Yeah...$30 is kind of wild to me.
Everyone wants their piece
I never missed a Richmond Robins game back in the 70-80's. Dave Schultz came up thru the Robins. Great times! You could sit on the glass for 5 bucks.
The best of 5 series is tied 1-1 coming back to Roanoke for games 3-4. Birmingham's goalie played phenomenal last night and shut us out 2-0.
See you all at the Dawg House!
Sometimes you just run into a hot tendie.
Crazy game, crazy atmosphere!!!
I'll be there tonight, let's bring home a ring!!!
Go be there for the boat, buddy. Get that Great Lakes Freighter! Naval drifter!
Fresh water vessel, sea tugger!!!!
HOW BOUT THOSE DIRTY DAWGS?! What a game!!! Dawgs were up 1-0, gave up the equalizer with 10 seconds left in the game. Our captain scored the game winner in OT
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!!!!! 🏆🐶🏒
Tendy owes Cap a steak dinner.
Did the final game sell out? It looked mighty close to full in the highlights. It would be a major feather in Roanoke's cap if they were drawing 6000+ in this league, even if it is the playoffs, that is a real nice number.
They announced the final attendance as ~5,300, but I'd be willing to bet more tickets were sold than that. We had the highest attendance rate of any team for the playoffs by a fair margin. It was full except for the corner sections, à la Cassell in the early Buzz years.
Champ merch