By Phillip Goodman
Oct. 11, 2024
The Reno Ice Raiders Hockey Club will begin their fourth season at Reno Ice and ninth overall as an organization when they face a new opponent, the Boston Gold Kings on Friday Oct. 18. In the '23-'24 campaign, Reno won 17 of 20 home games, all played before standing-room-only crowds.
"It's awesome," said nine-year Raider veteran, alternate captain, and ownership partner Weston Nash. "We see it every season. We love getting involved with the local youth teams. It's great to see the kids show up every game and be a part of it. We're just gonna keep growing the game."
American Hockey League Hall of Fame inductee Tim Tookey has the reigns as Head Coach joined again by Assistant Jamie Tebbe for their second season together in Reno.
"I think the guys played great together and they became close," Tookey said of last season. " They worked hard and gave it everything they had every time. At this level you wonder how hard guys are gonna play and everybody played 110% all the time."
"I really liked the culture of the guys last season," added Coach Tebbe. "They're totally committed to winning and playing for each other and that's what hockey's about. It's not an individual sport, it's a team sport. These guys all played 100% for each other. I'm looking forward to doing it all over again and making more W's and just having a ball."
Reno will face off against familiar opponents in Reno and on the road: McCall Mountaineers, Sin City Kings, Mansfield Barracudas, Santa Rosa Growlers, and the Fire Dept. of New York. The San Diego Super Hornets and Chicago Shamrocks (rebranded from Top Shelf) will visit Reno as well. In total, 18 games will be played in Reno and 10 on the road.
There are no major changes to the roster from last season. With an abundance of players now living in the Reno area, Tookey is happy to have increased competition amongst the Raiders' players to earn game time.
"These guys have built a great program where people want to come and play here now," he said. "The talent level is getting better and better. Some of the guys that might have played last year might have to move out of the way a little bit because the guys coming in here now might have a little more talent. The team's going to be better talent wise and just watching camp, the speed is unbelievable, the passing is terrific, and if we play like that we're going to be successful. You can tell they've all worked out and they're in great shape."
The Ice Raiders will don special camouflage jerseys for Veterans Day Weekend presented by BJ's Nevada BBQ, kelly green sweaters again for St. Patrick's Day Weekend presented by Reno Tattoo Removal, and presented by TNT Yard Service a retro jersey the final weekend of the season that will honor another team from Reno's rich hockey history.
"We worked with some military people that are close to the players on the team and they gave us approval for some of the designs," said Zeph Fagergren, ninth-year Ice Raiders veteran and guru of all graphics. Zeph designs every logo, Eventbrite flier, and players' kit for the Ice Raiders. More details will follow about the jersey designs and availability for purchase.
All home games will stream live on The Reno Ice Raiders YouTube Channel so please subscribe to the channel now and ring the bell for alerts. Casts will begin 10 minutes prior to scheduled start times and all home games are scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. PST.
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