Ice trumps turkey for these hockey players

Mac Bennett is breaking a family tradition this year.

“We go to my uncle's house,” the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders defenseman said. “Every year, for as long as I can remember. This is the first time I'm going to miss it.”

That's because the RoughRiders have their own Thanksgiving tradition - playing at Waterloo. Instead of turkey, cranberries and stuffing back home in Rhode Island, it's morning skate, late afternoon bus trip and evening hockey game in Iowa.

Not that Bennett minds.

“To me, believe it or not, I'd rather be playing hockey,” he said. “I mean, it's always nice to be with your family. But to be playing hockey, especially with this group of guys, that's cool.”

That seemed to be the prevailing opinion in the RoughRiders' locker room this week. Uh, Thanksgiving, Shmanksgiving.

You can chow down when the weekend's over. This is Waterloo, your biggest rival, and you look forward to every game against the Black Hawks, even on a holiday.

“My brother's got a Thanksgiving tournament back home, so my parents aren't coming down (from Wisconsin) any way,” Troy Grosenick said. “I know I'm not eating any turkey. I don't think Coach would be too happy.”

Yeah, it probably wouldn't be good for the tryptophan to hit in the middle of the game. Having a sleepy goaltender won't give you much chance at a victory.

For his part, Bennett said his housing parents have invited him to go with them for a big spread at Elmcrest Country Club today. He acknowledges that the buffet seems like a waste when you can't enjoy it fully.

“I can go with them, kind of pick at the food,” he said.

More or less, today will be just like any other game day for the Riders. It's a morning skate and video session starting at 10, then back home for an afternoon nap. The bus leaves at 4, and the game at Young Arena is at 7:05.

You'll be back in town by 11 or 11:30, home by midnight.

“I'm not sure what to think about it,” Riders Coach Mark Carlson said of playing every year on Thanksgiving. “It's kind of become a tradition in Waterloo. So I guess it's like the Dallas Cowboys always playing on Thanksgiving or something like that.”

Carlson said in year's past, his wife, Tammy, and their two boys have had Thanksgiving lunch at a neighbor's. Tammy Carlson took her husband some leftover turkey and fixings to the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena before he left with the team for Waterloo.

If there is a special lunch or supper, it'll come Sunday. The RoughRiders have home games Friday and Saturday nights against Indiana and Omaha, respectively.

Christmas will be different, since there are no games between Dec. 19 and 31. The players get to go home for a week or so.

But Thanksgiving is more Hockey Day than Turkey Day for these RoughRiders.

“That's just part of being an athlete, I guess,” Carlson said.