The 2007 CHA conference tournament will be held in Des Moines, Iowa. The conference, entering its eighth season this fall, will be playing the tournament at the 95KGGO Arena.
“The College Hockey America conference is indeed proud and pleased to join with Blackbeard Management/Des Moines Buccaneers in bringing NCAA Division I championship hockey to Des Moines and the Hawkeye State,” said CHA Commissioner R.H. “Bob” Peters. Because the winning team advances to the 16 team NCAA Division I championships, hockey fans can expect to witness outstanding, competitive, fast paced collegiate hockey.”
The 3,500 seat capacity facility is home tothe 2006 Tier 1 National Champion Des Moines Buccaneers. With a large contingency of youth players in the greater Des Moines area, 95KGGO Arena has long been a “hot-spot” for amateur hockey in the Midwest.
95KGGO Arena is owned and operated by Blackbeard Management, LLC a sister company of Buccaneers Hockey, LLC. Located in the city of Urbandale, 95KGGO Arena sits eight miles from downtown Des Moines. Originally built in 1959, the arena features fantastic sightlines for spectators and can be both an exhilarating and intimidating place to play and watch a hockey game.
“With the success of junior hockey here for the past three decades, we are a fitting venue to host the CHA Conference Championship,” commented Michael Ball, VP & COO of Blackbeard Management. “We are thrilled to team up with the CHA to promote college hockey to our fans and welcome the teams playing for a berth into the NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament.”
“There are a number of former Buccaneer and USHL players now in the CHA and it’s exciting for us and our fans to see them play at the collegiate level,” added Des Moines Buccaneers head coach and general manager Regg Simon.
“It will be great to bring college hockey to Iowa and have our fans witness firsthand the next level that our players are striving to achieve,” said Buccaneers President Shawn Edwards. “We are committed to bringing in outside events to the greater Des Moines area and this is an excellent avenue for us to promote and grow our community.”
The CHA is co-hosting the 2007 Frozen Four at the Savvis Center in St. Louis, Mo., with the St. Louis Sports Commission.
