No matter what unexpected Minnesota weather is in store next month, Lake Minnetonka will play host to a pond hockey tournament for the fifth year.
Over the next month, organizers of the North American Pond Hockey Championship will be closely watching the weather and ice on massive Minnetonka after a couple of years of warm weather altering the tournament.
"That's a part of what makes pond hockey special — we just embrace the winter," said J. Lindsay, a tournament organizer. "We don't whine about it, we just play."
This year's events take place from Jan. 19-22 in Excelsior next to Maynard's Restaurant and will raise money for charities.
Last year, organizers had to scrap the hockey games because warm weather made for unsafe ice, though a fundraiser and new outdoor beanbag tournament still raised $139,000 — a record amount for the event. In the tournament's second year, unseasonably warm weather and rain also turned 11 hockey rinks into slush and standing water on Excelsior Bay.
Now, Lindsay said organizers are optimistic that, over the next month, temperatures will dip and make for good conditions for this year's event.
On Friday, the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) warned that ice on Minnesota lakes and rivers is quickly thawing, creating dangerous conditions for anglers, snowmobilers, skiers and others. Conservation officers across the state are reporting vehicles, snowmobiles and ATVs going through the ice on lakes where ice isn't consistently thick.
"No ice should ever be considered 100 percent safe," DNR Lt. Lisa Kruse said in a statement, adding that people should check ice thickness every 150 feet.
