Hockey Hot Stove, LLC, is proud to announce that we’ve formed a strategic alliance with Hockey Day in Houston to help promote ice hockey in the region at all levels of the sport. The next Hockey Day in Houston event is set for March 21, 2026. The 2025 event was a huge success, and next year’s should be even bigger.
Local hockey tradition
South Texas, especially the Houston metropolis, has one of the fascinating but most often overlooked hockey traditions of any part of the United States. Hockey Hot Stove’s Ted Starkey recently discussed Houston’s hockey legacy and the ongoing efforts to bring an NHL expansion franchise to Houston. Houston is the largest U.S. market that does not have an NHL franchise. However, Houston-based teams won championships in the old World Hockey Association and International Hockey League, as well as the American Hockey League’s Calder Cup.
Meanwhile, the Houston area itself has a high demand to grow the game at its grass roots. There are rinks and leagues in and around Houston but there’s a need to update and expand.
Hockey in Houston
Led by the late Gordie Howe and son Mark, many Hockey Hall of Fame legends called the city their hockey home at one point or another during their careers. Gordie, of course, joined the Houston Aeros in the early 1970s to play with sons Mark and Marty. Together, they won the Avco Cup.
Today, the Howe Foundation give back to the Houston hockey community in multiple ways. They do so the same in the Delaware Valley through their generous support of Snider Hockey and Mark’s frequent participation in Flyers Alumni Association fundraising events. Specific to Houston hockey, the Howe family have helped support Hockey Day in Houston.
The association came about after the Golden Anniversary reunion of the Houston Aeros’ Avco Cup championship. Mark reconnected with Lance Rosenberg of Hockey Day in Houston. Rosenberg previously worked in the Flyers’ organization and maintains ongoing relationships with current and past members of the Flyers’ family.
The Howe Foundation offered a $25,000 matching donation for funds Hockey Day in Houston raised in the community and via sponsors. Meanwhile, the organization exceeded its goal, raising $30,550. The Howes offered another match for this year.
“After the success of year one, the only way to go bigger was to bring the Howes back to Houston for year two,” Rosenberg said.
Hockey Day in Houston: What you need to know
Hockey Day in Houston is run through the not-for-profit Hockey Players in Business. It’s a collaborative effort made by all partner organizations. The goal: provide opportunities for Houston area rinks, organizations, leagues, businesses, and organizations to market and promote in effort to drive awareness, grow the sport, and celebrate the game with hockey fans from all over the world.
The event is organized similar to the hockey block parties and Hockey is for Everyone initiatives supported by the National Hockey League. Chilly, the former Aeros mascot, has made reappearances at Hockey Day. He’s a big hit with the kids as well as those who grew up going to the Aeros games.
HDIH partners have included the Dallas Stars organization, the HCHSA (Harris County Houston Sports Authority), Saint Arnold Brewing Company (the host location), Pro Hockey Alumni and members of Hockey Players in Business. In year one, the event drew 4,000 people. Year Two exceeded the inaugural event by 25-plus percent, with more than 5,000 hockey supporters turning out. It was the largest hockey-related gathering in Houston since the American Hockey League incarnation of the Aeros left 12 years earlier.
Additionally, Year Two added the Houston Hockey Hall of Fame (located at T.C.Lewis’s rink complex, Aerodrome) and a youth hockey tournament. Even without a pro hockey team currently in Houston, the local hockey-loving community rallied together to make an impact. This was a very encouraging development: one that is expected to grow even more in 2026 (and hopefully skyrocket as momentum continues to grow toward an eventual NHL team in Houston). While having an NHL team would clearly help grow the game and increase local funding, an NHL team itself is not the end goal of Hockey Day in Houston. Supporting and strengthening the hockey community itself is the mission, along with creating opportunities in similar fashion to the work of Snider Hockey.
Bottom line: The 2025 HDIH event grossed $74,000. The organization has given back $45,000 to hockey in Houston through contributions or scholarships.
Gaining traction
In our next article, we’ll discuss the growth and surprising success of locally based teams and players at the game’s developmental levels. We’ll talk about youth and rec hockey levels. We’ll also discuss the many cross-overs between the Delaware Valley and Houston hockey, even apart from the obvious ties to Flyers legend Mark Howe and his family.
Will the Howes be going to the 2026 event, too?