Augustana hosts first hockey game on Sioux Falls ice

Students, alumni and hockey fans alike packed into the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center on Oct. 14 to watch the Vikings men’s hockey team emerge victorious for the first time in its inaugural season. 

“Just bringing this opportunity to Augustana and all of the campus colleagues, the student body, the current coaches in the other programs and all of these donors — it’s just a celebratory feeling tonight,” President Stephanie Herseth Sandlin said. 

With more than 3,600 spectators filling the stadium, the Vikings took down Bowling Green State University in a 3-2 victory. 

Fifth-year forward Arnaud Vachon said he could feel the crowd’s enthusiasm during the team’s warm-ups. 

“It was nuts, and it really helped us in the long run in terms of energy,” Vachon said. 

The game marks Augustana’s first hockey game on home ice. Midco Arena will hold its first game on Jan. 26, 2024, when the Vikings take on Ferris State University. The arena will be able to seat around 3,000 people. 

“I think it’ll be even more fun to have games on campus in our new Midco Arena,” senior Sam Skarstad said. 

The game included several guest-star performances, including the singing of the Star-Spangled Banner by Jim Cornelison, the national anthem singer for the Chicago Blackhawks, and a celebratory puck drop by T. Denny Sanford, a leading contributor to the hockey program. 

Many of the program’s donors, including 1999 alumnus John Berdahl, also attended the historic game. 

“Really happy that [the win] could happen when the founding partners are here,” head coach Garrett Raboin said. “All the people were in attendance that helped bring us to this point. Just a tremendous night and excited to enjoy it for a little bit.”

Berdahl’s 15-year-old and 12-year-old sons play hockey, and he said he is excited to see his children learn elite-level skills from the Vikings. 

“To be the beginning of something that’s going to be a legacy doesn’t come around very often, so I’m lucky to be a part of it,” Berdahl said. 

The first 1,000 attendees received an Augustana hockey puck to commemorate the inaugural home game. Additionally, every attendee had the chance to grab a light-up baton to use during the pre-game introductions.

At every home game this season, students will have the opportunity to win a $500 Visa gift card. Junior Jayda Becker was the first winner of the new tradition. 

Home games will also feature a Scheels “Row of the Game,” where a row will randomly be selected and people sitting in that row will receive a Scheels gift card. 

Augustana first announced its hockey program on June 16, 2021, and said the team will compete at the NCAA Division I level. 

On May 17, 2022, the program found a conference home in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association by a unanimous decision. The CCHA competes at the highest level of NCAA and is nationally recognized as a top player development program for the National Hockey League. 

Junior Ashton Jensen believes the Vikings are doing better than most people expected. 

“I think they’re exceeding the expectations,” Jensen said. “I don’t know if a lot of people gave them respect at the national level, so I think it’ll be pretty fun to see how they compete against the rest of the teams in their season.” 

Senior Jordan Slagle enjoyed watching the competitiveness of the game. 

“They're skating harder than I thought,” Slagle said. “They're bringing a good motor.” 

Shawna Hennen, freshman defenseman Hayden Hennen’s mother, traveled to the Vikings’ first game at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. 

“It’s amazing,” Shawna Hennen said. “It’s pretty surreal to watch them out there.”

She said she could see the team’s improvement at the first home game. 

“They look really good,” Shawna Hennen said. “I think they’ve got great things in store for them."