Hockey Day Minnesota 2019: Read shares memories of his time as a Beaver

Matt Read has played on some of the biggest and brightest stages the globe has to offer.
Madison Square Garden in New York, STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, the United Center in Chicago ... name a world-famous venue in the United States or in Canada, and he's probably played there on multiple occasions.

But ask him about the favorite barn he's ever played in and he'll give you an unexpected answer: It's John Glas Fieldhouse in Bemidji.
For more than four decades, Glas Fieldhouse, on the campus of Bemidji State University, served as the home of the BSU hockey program.
Read, now a forward for the Iowa Wild, played three years at Glas Fieldhouse before the program moved across town to the sparkling new Sanford Center, which is just a slap shot away from the Hockey Day Minnesota site on the shores of Lake Bemidji.
And while Read enjoyed a career season as a senior at the Sanford Center, his fondest memories come from the antiquated -- at least by modern standards -- and rambunctious "Glas."

Glas Fieldhouse seated just 2,400 spectators, but had bleachers on just one side of the rink that spanned from one goal line to the other.
"It was always loud, the ice was always great and the student section by the goalie ... it seemed like it was always packed," Read said. "For how small it was, you could hear everything in there. It was just a great arena to play in."
The arena's mystique was aided by the Beavers' incredible amount of success it had in the building when it played there.
Bemidji State went to 13 Frozen Fours at the Division I, II and III levels, taking home six DII and DIII NCAA national championships between 1984 and 1997. It also won seven NAIA Tournament championships between 1968 and 1980.
The combined 13 national titles turned Bemidji into a sort of hockey "Titletown," under the guidance of legendary coach Bob Peters, whose name the ice at the Sanford Center is named after.
"The history and tradition is one of the core values up there at Bemidji. That's the first thing they preach when you're a freshman, is that you're playing, not only for the guys in the locker room, but for everyone who has put on a Beaver sweater before you," Read said. "It's a cool thing. History is what builds a program and they still build the program around that."
After unprecedented success at the Division II and Division III levels, the Beavers transitioned to Division I in 1999, where Peters served his final two seasons as coach and retired in 2001 following 34 years behind the BSU bench.
He handed the baton to Tom Serratore, who is in the midst of his 18th campaign as coach of Bemidji State.
"I know Tom makes sure all the players know the history of Bemidji hockey," Read said. "They always talk about the national championships that they've won in the Division II and Division III era, and the sort of franchise, I guess you could say, that Bob Peters built up there back then."
Of course, the highlight of BSU's time in Division I was its magical run to the Frozen Four in 2009.
With an 18-15-1 record, the Beavers won the College Hockey America regular season and postseason tournament titles, earning the league's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
Once there, the Beavers upset the No. 2-overall seed in the tournament, Notre Dame, in a dominating 5-1 win. It followed up in the regional final with a 4-1 win over Cornell, sending the program to its first -- and to date, only -- Frozen Four in its Division I era.
Read had a front row seat. As a sophomore, Read led the Beavers with 40 points and was second on the club with 15 goals.
The town was abuzz with excitement.
"I remember when we landed after we played in Grand Rapids, Michigan, we won both of those games and flew home, the whole airport there was packed," Read said. "Everybody wanted to celebrate. It was a cool moment to see, not only other students, but professors and people from the community all around showing their support."
The Miami RedHawks ended BSU's run for Cinderella glory in Washington D.C., but the town's love affair with Beaver hockey was rekindled then.
The following year, the program moved to the Sanford Center, putting its future on much more stable ground, even in the uncertain world of college hockey.
Having played four seasons with the Beavers, and called Bemidji home for four summers, Read said he knows the community will host a successful event this weekend.
He won't be able to attend the event, but Read said he's looking forward to the flood of messages that will likely follow in the days after.
"It's a small town feeling, you know a lot of people there. When I was up there, I helped out with the high school hockey team a little bit. Hockey is a big thing that that town runs off of, especially the BSU hockey team," Read said.
"It looks like it's going to be a really cool event. Hopefully it's not minus-30 for the fans and the players. But I think it's going to be a great event and I know Bemidji knows how to host those things. They'll make a great effort to make sure everyone is taken care of. I'll be looking forward to seeing more pictures and seeing the outcome of what is going to happen up there."
Related:
- Hockey Day 2019: Five things to know about Bemidji - How to watch, live stream Hockey Day Minnesota 2019 - Get to know: Bemidji State women's hockey