"I think any day that we're able to add something to our community that offers our youth a safe place to play and to learn new skills is a good day," Chairperson for the YMCA of Middle Tennessee Liz Wilson said.
The outdoor hockey rink was constructed to make the sport more easily available to residents of the Bellevue area. The brand-new facility is the perfect introduction to hockey for those looking for a way to play for the first time but do not know how to skate or have the necessary equipment.
"You don't have to know how to ice skate, you don't have to know how to rollerblade, you can grab a stick and go run around and have fun," Predators Vice President and GM of the Ford Ice Centers Danny Butler said. "It was really built for the community."
The project was fully funded through the NHL and NHLPA's Industry Growth Fund, which awarded the Preds and Ford Ice Center $504,000 for their investment in developing youth hockey in their community.
For some, all they need is a chance to experience the opportunity to find a passion.
"To anyone who doubts that this can be a gating opportunity for people to get interested in ice hockey, you need to look no further back than the retirement comments of our favorite retiree, Pekka Rinne," Predators Chief Operating Officer Michelle Kennedy said. "His career started in his native land of Finland playing street hockey. While we may not achieve a hall-of-fame hockey career out of this, we'll sure have a lot of fun and we'll sure grow hockey a lot."
The organization's commitment to give back to the people who make Smashville special has been, and will continue to be, steadfast.
"We say this all the time: Giving back to our community is as important to us as playing hockey games and hosting concerts," Kennedy said. "This is what we do. This is what we want to do. We would not be anything close to what we are without this community."
Following the ribbon cutting ceremony, Ford Ice Center Bellevue hosted a Try Hockey for Free session on the newly minted rink. New players learned how to handle a street hockey ball and practice shooting in group instruction.
The Lee Company Dek Hockey Rink is open to the public for use. Reservations to use the rink for your group to use at no cost will be available soon. For more information,
click here
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