Monsters Drop Puck for Opening Weekend with Homestand Versus Crunch
October 10, 2022 – American Hockey League (AHL) – Cleveland Monsters News Release
CLEVELAND – The Cleveland Monsters begin the 2022-23 season this week against the Syracuse Crunch in back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday. Both games are currently scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
The first 5,000 fans attending Friday’s Opening Night presented by SeatGeek will receive a magnet schedule courtesy of University Hospitals Sports Medicine. Opening Night also marks the first 1-2-3 Friday of the season featuring $1 Pepsi products, $2 Hot Dog Wally hot dogs and $3 Labatt Blue and additional select beer specials. Additionally, Hockey for Heroes will take place every Friday night of the season allowing a special in-game recognition for veterans from The Domiciliary Care Program and the chance to meet with Monsters players following the game.
In conjunction with the celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Monsters will host Hispanic Heritage Night presented by Rocket Mortgage on Saturday night. Fans will be able to enjoy the sounds of Santa Cecilia Mariachi Band playing in the Atrium pregame as well as moments throughout the night. The Monsters are also proud recognize local organizations with Hispanic ties during the game including Pulpo Beer Co., Cleveland Play House and the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections.
The Monsters and Crunch will use commemorative Sugar Skull Hispanic Heritage pucks during warmups on Saturday which will then be available to purchase through DASH. The cultural and spiritual celebrants of Día de Los Muertos, “The Day of the Dead” often use the image of a sugar skull to celebrate a tradition of creating artisan handmade “skulls made of sugar” or Calaveras. These beautiful items culturally signify ancestors who have passed on and are usually personalized. For this Calavera, the hockey sticks and puck are present to first honor ancestors in the game of hockey and are blue and orange to symbolize the blessings of balance and abundance. The marigolds over the eyes are meant to symbolize the afterlife as they are commonly placed in celebration of this Mesoamerican cultural tradition. Prized for their bright colors and potent fragrance, marigolds are attract the souls of the dead to the ofrendas prepared for them. Families will often scatter marigold petals forming a path from their entrance to the ofrenda waiting within the home.
Proceeds from the specialty puck will benefit HOLA Ohio, a group that provides stability to Spanish-speaking, Latino, immigrant and farmworker families by breaking down barriers to better opportunities, providing access to medical and mental health care, immigration support, employment, educational programs and assistance with direct needs for struggling families.
Dropping the puck on Saturday will be special guest Albert Padilla, Assistant Athletic Trainer for the Cleveland Cavaliers and member of the Cavaliers organization Team Member Resource Group (TMRG) HOLA. TMRGs are team member led groups that provide support, mentoring, networking, and a platform for voicing the ideas and opinions of team members representing specific dimensions of diversity. Hispanics for Outreach, Leadership and Advocacy, also known as HOLA, mission is to advance the Hispanic community, through outreach, leadership and advocacy alongside Hispanic focused organizations in the Northeast Ohio area.
Saturday’s game will serve as the start of Simmer’s Sidekicks, a program conceived by Monsters defenseman Dillon Simpson. Simpson will host a local athlete from Unified Champion Schools every Saturday night providing the group with tickets, food, Monsters gear and the chance to send the team onto the ice as part of Cave Crew. Additionally, Simpson will hold a meet-and-greet with each child and their family following the end of the game.
Tickets for Friday and Saturday’s games are available now at clevelandmonsters.com, starting at just $10.
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