PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE JANUARY 2025

Dear HWBC Membership

I hope everyone has had a wonderful holiday season!  On behalf of the entire Board of Directors, we wish you all a very Happy New Year!

It's really hard to believe that we are just days away from the 50th anniversary of the first professional hockey game in Hartford!  On January 11, 1975, before a capacity crowd of 10,507 at the original Hartford Civic Center, the New England Whalers defeated the San Diego Mariners 4-3 in overtime.  Since then, there have been close to 2000 professional hockey games played on the corner of Asylum & Trumbull Street.  Whether it was a pro hockey game, be it the New England Whalers, the Hartford Whalers, or the Hartford Wolf Pack...or a UConn basketball or hockey game, or a Boston Celtics game, or a WWE Wrestling event, or a concert, or Disney on Ice, or even one of the many trade shows that have taken place in the exhibition hall, I would argue that everyone that reads this letter has many wonderful memories of events or games they attended in that building.  Yes, it has its faults...yes, it's outdated compared to other arenas in the area, but...it's home.  Home to OUR teams.  Home to OUR memories.

I am hoping that all Hartford hockey fans, regardless of where your allegiances lie, will be at the XL Center on January 11, 2025 for this very monumental night.  There is going to be a special ceremony before the 7:00 game that night, as the Wolf Pack take on the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, where 50 years of Professional Hockey in Hartford will be recognized.  The ceremony will be emceed by former Whalers/Hurricanes radio play-by-play man Chuck Kaiton, and a banner celebrating 50 years of Hartford Hockey, will be raised to the XL Center rafters.  Let's fill the building and make it loud and rocking to celebrate this incredible milestone.

Before the game on January 11, our friend Pat Pickens' new Whalers documentary will have it's world premiere at the CineStudio at Trinity College.  That begins at 2:00pm, and there will be a special Q&A with Pat and Howard Baldwin Sr. after the film.  Tickets are selling fast, please go on the CineStudio website to get your ticket today!  

Now, for some club news:  A friendly reminder that our winter meetings will be on Zoom.  These meetings will be Monday, Jan. 13, Monday, Feb. 10 and Monday, Mar. 10.  Meetings will begin at 7:00pm.  Our website and our Facebook page will have the meeting invites, I will also send one to the membership through email.  Looking forward to seeing you all online!

The 2025 Hartford St. Patrick's Day Parade will be Saturday, March 15, in downtown Hartford.  Please visit our website, and our Social Media outlets for the schedule as we get closer to that event.  

Our FANiversary will be Sunday, April 13, 2025, on the 28th anniversary of the final Whalers game in Hartford.  Time and location are to be announced.  

Last, we will have in person meetings in May and June, and our two annual summer events, Whalers Weekend with the Yard Goats, and HockeyDay in Springfield,  as we get more info on the dates for these events, we will be sure to pass them along.

On behalf of the entire HWBC Board of Directors, we thank you for your continued support, and we look forward to seeing you at a membership meeting or club function soon!

GO WHALERS!

Sincerely

Mark Anderson

President/Membership Director

Hartford Whalers Booster Club