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In the past, the ice on Hiawatha Lake was consistently a popular spot for the Syracuse community to skate, play hockey and enjoy each other’s company. But the lake’s been relatively vacant in recent years, prompting Tim O’Donnell to revive its past glory.

“I had talked about it for years, and finally my wife kicked me in the butt and said, ‘either do it or shut up’, so we did it!” O’Donnell said.

O’Donnell’s solution became the Syracuse Pond Hockey Classic. Since 2020, a group of hockey enthusiasts have held the one-day hockey tournament on the lake, sponsored by the city of Syracuse and local organizations. O’Donnell serves as the tournament’s director. This year’s tournament will take place on Feb. 4, and the organizers are expecting a lively turnout.

Besides the tournament, the event offers food and refreshments such as burgers, hot dogs, hot cocoa and adult beverages, O’Donnell said. The city of Syracuse provides free skates for the event, so families can enjoy time on the ice as well.

But for O’Donnell, the main event of the day is definitely the tournament itself. Sixteen teams participate in the round-robin style tournament, with each team being guaranteed three games. Winners go on to semifinals and finals, making it a busy day for players.

“It’s a lot of D1 caliber players that used to play in college,” O’Donnell said. “It’s really competitive hockey and it’s really fun to watch.”

One of the event’s organizers, Joe Fruscello, said that aside from hockey, it’s also just fun to see children of all ages enjoying skating. The other activities, like the food and fire pits, really add a lot to the event as well, he said.

“It’s such a lively atmosphere with people of all ages embracing the city and our event,” Fruscello said.

O’Donnell added that the tournament is unlike typical hockey games for a number of reasons. The rink dimensions, for example, are completely different from traditional hockey rinks, and teams also don’t have goalies. These components work together to create an action-packed game, O’Donnell added.

“As far as playing, I just make sure I have plenty of beer and a nice winter hat,” two-time tournament player Shaun Norfolk said.

During the tournament’s first year, organizers struggled to spread the word. This year, Fruscello said the event has gained a lot of steam, and has turned into a community event that draws hockey fans from throughout Syracuse.

“I just think there’s really a kind of palpable buzz about it, more than any other year, because now it’s a thing,” O’Donnell said. “Now when I talk about [the tournament] with people they know what I’m talking about.”

Fruscello added that another challenge the tournament faced during their first year was Syracuse’s unpredictable weather. The inaugural year, they struggled with having enough ice to safely hold the event, but the second year the temperatures were so low that their beer froze.

This year is reminiscent of that first year, with temperatures not dropping low enough to hold the event when it was originally planned for. It was supposed to be held on Jan. 28, but it was pushed back to Feb. 4 because of the expected warmer weather.

“No matter what we do, no matter how well prepared we are, there’s just absolutely zero control,” O’Donnell said.

Last year, the weather cooperated and the event was so successful that they made enough profit to donate to various local causes, including the Greater Strathmore neighborhood association.

The tournament’s main beneficiary is Luke’s Army Pediatric Cancer Research Fund, in honor of one of the members of the group who lost his young son to cancer. Presenting the check to the organization last year was an incredibly moving experience, O’Donnell said.

Norfolk said that the event is an opportunity to introduce the local hockey community to Strathmore and bring people together. The day after the tournament’s first year, O’Donnell saw more people playing hockey on the lake.

“We breathed life back into (the pond),” O’Donnell said. “That was a proud moment.”

Published on January 25, 2023 at 11:36 pm