'It's Magical': Canes, NHL Open New Street Hockey Rinks In Apex

APEX, N.C. - On Saturday, March 29, playing the great game of hockey became much easier in the state of North Carolina.

With hundreds of up-and-coming hockey players in attendance, Carolina Hurricanes brass, representatives from the NHL, and the Town of Apex cut the ribbon on a pair of brand-new multi-use surfaces in the Triangle.

“This is really exciting to see this come to fruition," said Canes President Doug Warf. "This is years in the works and a great partnership between the Canes, the NHL and the Town of Apex. I think this has been in the works for probably four or five years. To see it come to fruition, see all the kids here and everybody having fun today, it’s magical."

The two 160-by-75-foot street hockey rinks feature aluminum prefabricated dasher board systems, player benches, penalty boxes, scorekeeper boxes, chain length fencing, mateflex sport court tile and scoreboards.

One rink is outfitted as a multipurpose court, offering hockey, futsal, and basketball, while the other will strictly be for hockey. In partnership with the Hurricanes, the Town of Apex will offer youth and adult programming, from try-hockey-for-free to organized league hockey, along with tournaments, camps, clinics and pick-up hockey - click here to learn more.

Located just 13 miles from Lenovo Center, the project marks the latest step forward in the growth of hockey in the Old North State. With assistance from the NHL's Industry Growth Fund (IGF), which "was created to support and accelerate the development of NHL and Club business initiatives and projects that promote long-term fan development and increase participation at all levels of hockey with an emphasis on youth," the new rinks help break down financial barriers associated with hockey.

"That’s what I love about street hockey, ball hockey, and DEK hockey - it’s the easiest way to get into the game," added Warf. "A lot of times, ice hockey can be challenging. It’s a high expense and you’ve got to have the ice availability in our area. This is the easiest way to play and the more rinks we can put out, the more kids we can get just to sample our game and try it [is great]."

A project "years in the works" certainly took effort from several parties to come to fruition. From the Hurricanes, to the NHL, to the Town of Apex itself, everyone had a hand in creating what should be a wonderful addition to a thriving sports scene in the Triangle.

"For us, it’s about bringing people together. We often talk about how there’s nothing we can’t accomplish when we work together. This is a true testament. This is another opportunity to show the community and beyond that we can do things together. And what a tremendous investment by the Carolina Hurricanes. We’re just excited about it, as you can tell with the response here today," said Town of Apex Mayor Jacques K. Gilbert.

Watching hockey fans young and old break in the new rinks was a sign of just how far the sport has come in North Carolina, now with multiple generations of Hurricanes fans eager to get involved. And with the additions in Apex, it's never been easier to get into the game, whether you're a lifelong fan or just getting started.

"We continue to strive to make sure that everyone has an opportunity to thrive, and we’re using amenities like this to do that," said Gilbert. "If I was a young man like the age of these young people right here and had this opportunity, it would have been tremendous. More importantly, we know that there are people in our community that don’t have the access. They don’t have the funds to get this opportunity to move forward, so we believe this right here will be a game-changer, and we’re going to score big.”

As much as Saturday was a celebration of what has been accomplished, plenty of work still lies ahead. The goal, for both the Hurricanes and the NHL, is to use this as a jumping-off point to continue increasing accessibility to our great game in the Carolinas and beyond.

"This is going to be a flagship model, hopefully, for the rest of the league and all the other markets to see what we’re going to do here in the next year. This is why we’ve decided that this is going to be one of our pilot markets for our NHL Street initiative," said Sean Whyte, senior director of the NHL's IGF.

"We’ll brand it all ‘Canes’ and be able to get into these communities and work with boys and girls clubs in our schools, get into PE classes and really make sure that one, we’re getting that brand out there, two, we’re making sure that all these kids have the opportunity to play this game, and three, tie it back to what the brand is all about, and that is being in the community."

Hockey players often talk about growing up playing on backyard ponds with just their skates, stick and a puck. They'll reminisce on connecting with family and building relationships while simply playing for fun - no leagues, ice time fees or other costly expenses.

And while the sport is no longer a novelty in North Carolina, with the Canes celebrating a run of more than 100 consecutive sold-out crowds at Lenovo Center and the local youth ice hockey scene flourishing, those types of opportunities haven't always been there for its residents. Saturday's event opened new doors to new communities, giving everyone the chance to grow up playing the greatest game in the world - for fun.