Nebraska

Nebraska is a state in the central United States.

It has a population of about 1,900,000.

Its capital is Lincoln and the largest city is Omaha.

History of hockey in Nebraska

Hockey came to Nebraska in 1922, when two Omaha teams, the National Bank and the Nameless hockey team, the latter composed of local businessmen, played two games against one another, on February 11 and 25. The Bankers won the second game, 2-1. On January 2, 1923, Omaha National Bank beat the U.S. National Bank 4-1. The Omaha Ice Hockey League debuted in 1925, the Wildcats blanking the Tigers 6-0 in the first game on January 4. The Lions edged the Wildcats 7-6 the following week. These were the only games played that year. Sidney, a town close to the Colorado border was playing hockey by 1925, the Tigers beating the Wildcats 3-2 on January 18. Fort Omaha had hockey teams by 1926. A league was formed in Fort Omaha, composed of various Company teams. Fort Snelling, Minnesota, faced Fort Omaha on February 23, 1926, and beat them 3-1.

Despite these early efforts, hockey barely launched in Omaha, and the Sidney Greyhounds were the most consistently active team early on. They played teams from Colorado and Wyoming, tying the Longmont All-Stars 2-2 on January 20, 1929, losing 9-1 to the Fort Collins Falcons on January 27, 1929, and 7-4 to Homewood Park (CO) on February 9, 1930, and also beat North Platte 2-1 on January 5 and 5-0 on January 26, 1930. Sidney thrashed North Platte 11-1 on January 24, 1932. In January 1936, Laramie (WY) blanked Sidney 8-0. On January 24, 1937, the North Platte Buffalos edged Sidney 4-3 in overtime. The Greyhounds beat Chappell 7-5 on February 4.

Professional hockey came to Nebraska in 1939-40, when the Omaha Knights made their debut in the American Hockey Association, playing at the Ak-Bar-Sen Arena. Later incarnations of the Knights played in the United States Hockey League (1945-1951), International Hockey League (1959-1963), and the Central Hockey League (1963-1975). The Omaha Ak-Bar-Sen Knights were members of the American Hockey League from 2005-2007.

On March 1, 1953, the Petrie All-Stars (named for Gordon Petrie, a former Omaha player stricken with polio) defeated a Wichita semi-pro team team 9-5 in Omaha. Over 4,000 fans attended an exhibition game in Omaha on January 27, 1954, which saw the Cleveland Barons beat the Providence Reds 8-3. The next night, the Reds blasted the Barons by the same score. On February 26, the Detroit Red Wings beat the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 in a National Hockey League game played in Omaha. Another such game took place on December 1, 1954, the Chicago Blackhawks tying the Montreal Canadiens 3-3. The Omaha Amateur Hockey League was contested from 1939-1942 and 1945-1950. On February 3, 1957, the Omaha Red Wings beat the Des Moines Capitols 5-2. In January 1958, the Red Wings swept the Lincoln AFB Blue Jets by scores of 7-0 and 12-2.

The University of Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks have played college hockey at the NCAA Division I level since 1999. The Omaha Lancers have played in the junior United States Hockey League since 1986. The Lincoln Stars began play in the USHL in 1996, and the Tri-City Storm, based in Kearney, joined the league in 2000.

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