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South St. Paul to Dedicate Doug Woog Arena on Hockey Day

By Minnesota Hockey, 02/05/16, 12:15PM CST

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South St. Paul is set to honor one of Minnesota’s hockey legends, Doug Woog, with the official dedication of Doug Woog Arena on Saturday, February 6th, 2016. The dedication event, which includes a special unveiling, an on-ice tribute, refreshments and more, starts at 2 p.m. at 141 6th Street S., in South St. Paul. The event is open to the public.

Woog grew up playing at what was formerly Wakota Arena, where he led the South St. Paul Packers to four high school State Tournaments and became a first team All-State player. Woog went on to play for the University of Minnesota, earning team captain, MVP and first team All-American honors his junior year.

Following his playing career, Woog returned to the South St. Paul Packers High School and served as the hockey team’s head coach from 1977-1985, and progressed to an assistant coaching position with the US Olympic hockey team in 1984. In 1985, Woog was named head coach of the United States World Junior Hockey Team, competing in Helsinki, Finland. Woog went on to coach the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers Men’s Hockey team from 1985-1999 and was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2002.

The dedication of Woog’s hometown rink in his honor is the latest in a long list of accomplishments and accolades.

According to South St. Paul's website, Wakota Arena was built in 1962 as a one-ice sheet facility and was privately owned by Wakota Arena Incorporated. The name was changed to “Wakota” Arena, a combination of Washington and Dakota counties. 

In 1977, the City of South St. Paul purchased the arena and has made three substantial renovations over the past 35 years. The first in 1989, with the addition of a large concession stand and lobby area added to the south end of the building as well as an upstairs viewing room. In 1997, Rink #2 was built in addition to two large office spaces and the Community Learning Center (CLC). The third renovation occurred in 2014 with the conversion of the refrigeration system from Freon to ammonia and the remodel of the original rink creating six new locker rooms, an off-ice training facility, community meeting space, and elevated warm viewing areas. 

The arena has been home to Minnesota Hockey’s Ted Brill Great 8 Festival for over 15 years.  The CCM HP Ted Brill Great 8 Festival is a tournament held each spring which showcases the best high school seniors from around the state distributed into eight section based teams. 

For additional information, contact Doug Woog Arena at 651-554-3330 or on the City’s Website at www.southstpaul.org.

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South St. Paul is set to honor one of Minnesota’s hockey legends, Doug Woog, with the official dedication of Doug Woog Arena on Saturday, February 6th, 2016. The dedication event, which includes a special unveiling, an on-ice tribute, refreshments and more, starts at 2 p.m. at 141 6th Street S., in South St. Paul. The event is open to the public.

Woog grew up playing at what was formerly Wakota Arena, where he led the South St. Paul Packers to four high school State Tournaments and became a first team All-State player. Woog went on to play for the University of Minnesota, earning team captain, MVP and first team All-American honors his junior year.

Following his playing career, Woog returned to the South St. Paul Packers High School and served as the hockey team’s head coach from 1977-1985, and progressed to an assistant coaching position with the US Olympic hockey team in 1984. In 1985, Woog was named head coach of the United States World Junior Hockey Team, competing in Helsinki, Finland. Woog went on to coach the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers Men’s Hockey team from 1985-1999 and was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2002.

The dedication of Woog’s hometown rink in his honor is the latest in a long list of accomplishments and accolades.

According to South St. Paul's website, Wakota Arena was built in 1962 as a one-ice sheet facility and was privately owned by Wakota Arena Incorporated. The name was changed to “Wakota” Arena, a combination of Washington and Dakota counties. 

In 1977, the City of South St. Paul purchased the arena and has made three substantial renovations over the past 35 years. The first in 1989, with the addition of a large concession stand and lobby area added to the south end of the building as well as an upstairs viewing room. In 1997, Rink #2 was built in addition to two large office spaces and the Community Learning Center (CLC). The third renovation occurred in 2014 with the conversion of the refrigeration system from Freon to ammonia and the remodel of the original rink creating six new locker rooms, an off-ice training facility, community meeting space, and elevated warm viewing areas. 

The arena has been home to Minnesota Hockey’s Ted Brill Great 8 Festival for over 20 years.  The CCM HP Ted Brill Great 8 Festival is a tournament held each spring which showcases the best high school seniors from around the state distributed into eight section based teams. 

For additional information, contact Doug Woog Arena at 651-554-3330 or on the City’s Website at www.southstpaul.org.

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