Ninety-two light bulbs burn bright, making up the Palmer Lake Star as the backdrop to the fourth annual Palmer Lake Outdoor Classic Tournament.  Fireworks of orange, yellow, green, and red lit the sky above Palmer Lake in Monument, Colorado as the Wolves skated in exhibition games on the pond.  Simply stick, puck, ice, and net.  

The tournament was a four-team, double-elimination contest with the winner heiling a star trophy, symbolizing the “spirit of goodwill.” 

“We love having the Palmer Lake Star.  It’s kind of the backdrop [to the games.]  And then giving the trophy out as the star for the celebration of the event,” Lewis-Palmer Varsity Ice Hockey Head Coach and event organizer, Scott Bradley said.

Because the Outdoor Classic event is an exhibition, the rules aren’t the same as a Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) sanctioned event.  

Teams played only four-on-four, compared to the typical five-on-five.  There were no faceoffs, no glass, and the team nearest to the puck when it went out of play would play on.  Games were only twenty minutes total with a running clock.  No lines, no zones, just ice.

“This was how hockey was designed,” Coach Bradley said.  “A bunch of athletes out on the frozen pond, late at night, lights from maybe a car, or maybe the lights we have here, whatever.”

The Palmer Lake Outdoor Classic attempted to simulate this feeling since the lake is frozen every winter.  It was well received by Grandview. 

“Being from Michigan, this is what it’s all about,” Grandview’s Varsity Ice Hockey Head Coach Josh Schaffer said.  “It’s cool for the guys to experience it and come out in the cold and the ice is bumpy.”

This year, however, the conditions posed a challenge for the event to even happen in the first place.  The classic was rescheduled twice for very opposite reasons, and even had the threat of not happening at all.

On the originally scheduled date, January 4th, “[this lake] was water.  We had paddle boarders and ducks swimming around,” Coach Bradley said. 

The event was then rescheduled for last Saturday, January 18th, until record-low temperatures forced the event to be moved again due to concerns about player and spectator safety.

“January 18th was the [rescheduled] day.  And that was the Arctic blast, -8° temperatures, [so we had to] reroll it to Tuesday night,” Coach Bradley said.

Still, schools paid money for a spot at the event, and organizers wanted to honor that – rescheduling again for this Tuesday, January 21st.

“[It’s] super challenging just to coordinate all the logistics, all the teams, all the families to [keep pushing it back.]  But it was neat to see it all come together, and [I’m] grateful to get it done,” Bradley said.

When it all came together, the Palmer Lake Outdoor Classic did so for a good cause.  Zach Ledford, an assistant coach at Lewis-Palmer, has become a symbol of hope for the community.  His three-year-old daughter, Harper, was diagnosed with Leukemia this year and has gone through treatment.

“It’s been our team’s sponsor child.  She’s been a fighter,” Bradley said with enthusiasm. “To watch her fight… has been very motivating for our team.”

The fee that teams pay to enter the tournament will go to that cause.

“Anything we can do to support her and her recovery, and battle with cancer we’re gonna do it,” Coach Bradley said.

Other coaches want to go all in on the causes as well.

“I know Scott Bradley, and it’s a good cause to raise a bunch of money for,” Coach Schaffer said. “It’s an easy choice.  Anytime we can help out, we want to.”

Another portion of the funds raised from the Outdoor Classic go right back to the Lewis-Palmer Hockey Club. 

“We don’t get very much funds from the district at all… [This event] funds our hockey team,” Bradley said.

As the sun dipped, so did temperatures, With the wind chill, temperatures reached below 20°F.  As spectators huddled around the makeshift heaters made up of firewood, the Colorado campfire smell clung to clothes and jackets as players tried to stay warm.

“It was absolutely freezing, but, you know what, it comes with being out here,” Senior Defenseman and Wolves Captain, Evan Stellino said.  “It’s fun, and you don’t really feel it when you’re out there.”

While Grandview lost to host Lewis-Palmer 1-0 in the opening game, and again to Chatfield 2-1 in the third-place game, the cause, the pond, and the scenes made it worth it.

“I loved [this experience],” Stellino said.  “It’s a very niche part of the sport, and it’s just amazing and so much fun.”

“I’m glad [the team] got to come out here and take a break from me,” Coach Schaffer said. “(They were able to) come out and enjoy this and be together and have good fun.”