Greeley Has A New Junior Hockey Team

The Colorado Grit will start in 2023-24 NAHL season; Former NHLer David Clarkson is a part-owner

Man, if I was a hockey fan kid living in Greeley, I’d be pretty excited right now. I’d have a new hockey team to root for, with a cool name and a cool logo. Northern Colorado hockey fans, welcome the Colorado Grit.

The Colorado Grit is the latest expansion team to the North America Hockey League. The league bills itself as “one of only two non-tuition-based premier developmental junior leagues in the country” and “America's only 'National League' when it comes to junior hockey.”

The Grit, who will begin play at the 1,200-seat Greeley Ice Haus in 2023-24, will compete in the NAHL’s South Division. Former NHL player David Clarkson is a part-owner and team president. Here’s more from the Grit team release:

The Colorado Sports Partners, LLC, ownership group and key personnel all have a passion for hockey and helping players develop and pursue their hockey goals. Besides a great passion for hockey, the group has a strong financial background, strong business experience, nine years of Junior hockey experience, over 20 years of high-level coaching, recruiting, and player development experience at the Junior, Professional, and AAA/Tier I levels.

CEO and Owner Bob Bowden is the Founder and Owner of B2B Builders, Bowden Properties, and Bowden Custom Homes in Aspen, Colorado. Established 1998 to Present. He also serves as Executive VP of Sencore, Inc., an electronic testing device manufacturer. President and Owner Casey Bradshaw is the Founder and Owner of Certified Prosthetics & Orthotics and Certified Orthopedics/Adaptive. He has previously served as President Mountain States Youth Hockey and V.P. of Northern Colorado Youth Hockey. Vice-President and Owner David Clarkson had the opportunity to play in the NHL for 12 years and has spent the last five years as a dedicated youth coach, in addition to currently volunteering as a coach for the Colorado Warriors Hockey team.

The Greeley Ice Haus lends itself well to house a NAHL team with 1,200+ seat capacity, boxes, concessions, built out locker rooms, and offices all situated in a downtown backdrop with bars, restaurants, and hotels within steps of the facility. The venue is in the City of Greeley about 50 miles Northeast of Denver. Greeley is in Weld County with a local population over 300,000 and is considered the fourth fastest growth area in the USA. This community has grown immensely over the last decade but has kept its small community culture.

“We are excited to grow the NAHL towards the west with likeminded owners interested in putting the players and the community first. The Colorado Grit will be the NAHL’s first-ever team based in the State of Colorado and will create natural rivalries with those teams in the Western part of the South Division,” said NAHL Commissioner and President Mark Frankenfeld. “In addition, the team is in close proximity to three, high-level NCAA Division I hockey programs, which will bring more eyes on every player that plays in the South Division.”

The Colorado Grit will be the ninth team in the NAHL’s South Division. The South Division currently has eight teams, including: Amarillo Wranglers (Amarillo, TX), Corpus Christi IceRays (Corpus Christi, TX), El Paso Rhinos (El Paso, TX), Lone Star Brahmas (North Richland Hills, TX), New Mexico Ice Wolves (Albuquerque, NM), Odessa Jackalopes (Odessa, TX), Oklahoma Warriors (Oklahoma City, TX), Shreveport Mudbugs (Shreveport, LA). Five of the last 10 Robertson Cup National Champions have come from the South Division.

“As a group we are excited for the opportunity to join and be accepted into the NAHL. With the great reputation of the NAHL coupled with this great Colorado opportunity, there is no doubt a successful organization can be built. This group is committed to long long-term success and will establish a program both the Colorado Hockey Community and the NAHL will be proud of,” stated Bradshaw.

This should be a fun thing. I bet it will be popular in Greeley.