Patrick WilliamsFeatures Writer for TheAHL.com
Back home in Des Moines this weekend, the Iowa Wild enjoy a climate-controlled facility inside the Casey’s Center.
No cold, no freezing cold since last week’s outdoor game in Minnesota.
And they are happy to have the goalkeeper back Cal Petersen.
Petersen missed six weeks due to injury before getting a start last Saturday in Milwaukee, his first action since December 12. It was a solid effort, too, in which he made 27 saves and held the Wild to a one-goal game until the Admirals empty-netter.
Petersen, a product of Waterloo, Iowa, signed with the Minnesota Wild as a free agent last July, giving him his first chance to play in his hometown since his youth days with the Waterloo Black Hawks of the United States Hockey League.
Since Minnesota has committed Filip Gustavsson again Jesper Wallstedt Apparently, Petersen was well aware of the possible assignment to Iowa. But the balance worked for both sides. The Wild got goaltending insurance in Petersen, who has played 106 games in the NHL with Los Angeles and Philadelphia. And Petersen had the opportunity to be just two hours from his hometown, making it easy for family and friends to see him play.
Petersen also knows how to give back to Iowa. He and the Wild teamed up with Scheels, a historic Midwest sporting goods retailer, to launch the Goalies Give Back community program last month. The goal is simple: buy new goaltending equipment for young players and reduce the cost of ice time – the two biggest obstacles to getting the next generation of kids into the game. Petersen will donate $1 for each save this season, with Scheels matching that donation.
But Petersen is doing more than lending his name — or money — to the effort.
The program acquired hockey equipment last month in partnership with the MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex near West Des Moines. The Des Moines Youth Hockey Association donated that equipment to local players for free. The DMYHA also holds goaltending clinics in the evening, and Petersen and his Iowa teammates will also appear at them as volunteer instructors. Goalies Give Back will also provide funds to offset clinic costs.
Floor hockey? That has been a pastime for students throughout the decades, so Petersen and his teammates will also provide floor hockey equipment to local schools and after-school programs.
A chance to skate at the Casey Center? DMYHA goalies will have the opportunity to join Petersen at the home of the Wild for a clinic and “goalie game.” That event is scheduled for March 30.
Pro hockey doesn’t always allow players to stay in one place for long. When Petersen joined the Minnesota organization last summer, he wanted a connection to Des Moines.
“I think it’s growing,” Petersen said of the state’s hockey scene. “There’s a great new facility there at the RecPlex, and I’ve had a chance to go out a few times to skate with some of the local kids. I think there’s a really good foundation, and there’s an even better chance for Iowa to be a hot spot for hockey players.”
Cost keeps many kids out of hockey. Between the equipment, the ice time and the lack of local rinks, getting kids into hockey and being able to experience its rewards has been a huge challenge in the sport. Across the northern border of Iowa, Minnesota has a hockey tradition that goes back decades. Iowa isn’t there yet.
“That’s my minimum goal for the program I started,” Petersen explained. “Making sure they have the right facilities where cost isn’t an immediate barrier to trying to play goalie or getting on the ice. If that can help a little, it makes more kids want to try goalie and make it their thing.”
After joining Iowa, Petersen went to the team office and pitched his idea. Senior media relations manager Alec Lesner and public relations manager Nick Spolec helped him to map the plans continuously, fill in the details and bring the project from concept to reality.
“They did a great job of giving it legs and putting a lot of pressure on it,” continued Petersen. “They were a big part of raising public awareness, it was a great effort of all time that they accepted.
“There are a lot of people who care a lot about growing the game and the presence of children.”
In the American Hockey League for two decades, TheAHL.com features writer Patrick Williams and currently covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a regular contributor to SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. He was the recipient of the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for the league’s top scorer in 2016.
