Hockey Hut cuts ribbon on new community pavilion in Clifton Park
CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. » On one of the coldest mornings of the year, members of the Clifton Park community braved the weather to congratulate Hockey Hut, one of the area’s only hockey training centers, on the newest expansion to its facility.
A ribbon-cutting was held Saturday morning for an outdoor pavilion ice rink that will serve the community year-round.
Ice rinks and hockey centers can be found around the Capital Region, but Hockey Hut is one of a kind in the Southern Saratoga County area. Clifton Park Councilwoman Amy Flood, whose son trained at Hockey Hut for many years, is glad the business is local.
“I’m very excited for the parents who don’t have to travel for their kids to play,” she said at the ribbon-cutting. “We’re keeping it local.”
Owner Ron Kuhl thanked everyone for their support of his business, getting a little emotional when he talked about all the relationships and community connections that facilities like his are founded on.
“It’s been an incredible journey and an incredible opportunity to make an impact,” Kuhl commented. “We’ve made a great impact in the hockey community, and this pavilion is our chance to reach out to the greater community.”
The new pavilion will serve as an additional ice rink during the winter, open to not just hockey games but open skating and training as well. During the rest of the year, it will be converted to an activity center open to the community for sports such as pickleball, roller hockey, basketball, and open roller skating. Its open-air construction will enable more flexible use during the pandemic, when health and safety restrictions make outdoor activities easier to host than indoor ones.
“I’m always amazed when an entrepreneur manages to expand in the middle of a pandemic,” said Pete Bardunias, senior vice president for membership and community advancement of the Capital Region Chamber. “It’s exciting because entrepreneurship doesn’t wait. Bringing more resources into a community known for sports is a great thing.”
“You’ve been here for a long time, and we wish you many more years of success,” Clifton Park Town Supervisor Phil Barrett said.
For the new pavilion, Kuhl received celebratory citations from Barrett and representatives for State Sen. Jim Tedisco, R-Glenville, and Assemblywoman Mary Beth Walsh, R- Ballston.
Hockey Hut first opened in 1997, under the ownership of Rick and Claudia Caruso. They brought Kuhl into the company early on, and has since grown it into a flourishing business. In its opening year, Hockey Hut, then located on Route 9, was awarded “Rookie Business of the Year.”
Since then the facility has moved to its current location at 1535 Crescent Rd., where it serves the community as an ice rink and training center. Students of all ages and skill levels are welcome, starting in the Hockey Tots program as young as two years old and continuing all the way up to professional players.
“It’s amazing,” commented Claudia. “25 years ago there weren’t year-round sports, and no one thought something like that would work. So there we were, parents just waiting for hockey season to arrive, and we decided we wanted to try a yearround sports program for ourselves. Ron is such a good person, he was perfect for the job.”
“It’s truly great to see our vision grow, seeing Ron take it to the next level,” added Rick. “It’s such fun for Claudia and I to sit back and watch this grow. We never looked at this intending to have a legacy, but here we are now and Ron’s got it. He’s a real winner.”
For more information, including training sessions and rink reservations, visit https://myhockeyhut.com/.