Posted by Sabrina B. @gametimegirl
Michigan and Michigan State set a world record for attendance at a hockey game Saturday, playing in front of an unofficial total of 113,411 fans in the Wolverines’ 5-0 victory at Michigan Stadium.
Michigan announced the attendance during the third period. The previous mark for a hockey game was 77,803 at this year’s world championship in Germany.
Mike Janela, an adjudicator for Guinness World Records, was on hand to verify the feat. He confirmed that the attendance was more than enough for a world record, although he said his organization would need a bit longer to come up with an official attendance figure, possibly using detailed photos of the crowd to make a final count.
Janela said Guinness receives over 1,000 record applications a week, although only about three percent are approved.
The game — dubbed “The Big Chill at the Big House” — took place nine years after the same two teams played another outdoor game at Michigan State’s football stadium. Since then, the idea has been copied at the college level and by the NHL.
The huge crowd in the stadium’s expansive bowl made this edition unique. The school’s announced attendance would make this the largest crowd to see any event at Michigan Stadium, surpassing the 113,090 for a football game earlier this year.
The “Big Chill” nickname was a bit of a misnomer, with the temperature in the low 40s at the beginning of the game. With the lines on Michigan’s football field still clearly visible, the Olympic-sized rink stretched from one 15-yard line to the other. Instead of adding even more seats for fans, organizers kept the area around the ice clear so fireworks could be set off after goals and again after the game.
There was enough room for the Michigan band to perform in the north end zone before the start. Then Jon Merrill opened the scoring with a shot from the point in the first period, and when the puck hit the net, the crowd let loose with a roar normally reserved for touchdowns in this venue.
Microphones were placed close enough to the ice to amplify the normal hockey sounds of the puck hitting the boards and players skating swiftly back and forth, making it easier for those seated far away to feel like they were part of the action.
Although wind and rough ice can always cause problems at events like this, the game wasn’t too sloppy. Merrill added a second goal before the end of the first period, and then Carl Hagelin added one in the second and another in the third. David Wohlberg completed the scoring for Michigan.
Shawn Hunwick finished with 34 saves for the Wolverines.
-AP
