The Vail Mountaineers adult hockey club made the long trek down to Denver last night to catch what turned out to be one of the most bizzare Avalanche games of the season in a 5-4 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes.

Like all of our After-Hours teams, the boys took advantage of a great Guild discount on tickets and in return for their support, they received a rare opportunity to hit Pepsi Center ice following the game for an hour of shinny, Vail style.

Here’s an interview we shot with Gary Defina, the captain of the Vail crew. Gary is also a coach for Battle Mountain High School’s hockey team, so he’s well-connected in the Vail hockey community and a great guy with some great stories. He’s a big supporter of The Hockey Guild and The Avalanche Guild, so we thank Gary for his passion and are proud to have him be a part of the exclusive After-Hours club!

As a way of saying thanks to Gary’s crew for their support, we granted him two free shootout teams in our third-annual Battle for the Banner Colorado Avalanche Shootout Tournament, which takes place every March right on Pepsi Center ice. The tournament brings together shootout teams comprised of players that participated in After-Hours games throughout the year. The two teams that advance to the final shootout game actually play the championship on Pepsi Center ice during intermission of an Avalanche home game!

If your adult (or youth) hockey team is interested in setting up one of our exclusive Avalanche Guild events, just contact us at info@thehockeyguild.com and we will do our best to make it happen!