When you think of Gopher men’s hockey, one of the first things that comes to mind is the historic Mariucci Arena.
However according to Marshall H. Tanick of Minnpost.com, the athletic department is about to sell the naming rights to the 24-year-old building.
Tanick notes the decision has to do with the school’s Nothing Short of Greatness campaign which is a vision to transform Gopher athletic facilities and other buildings around the campus and community.
Last month the U of M renamed its School of Journalism to the Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communications.
The Hubbard family is one of the U of M’s biggest financial backers and they own KSTP in the Twin Cities as well as other broadcasting entities around the nation.
Yet the renaming could upset diehard Gopher hockey fans.
The current Mariucci Arena opened in 1993, but Gophers’ previous arena was also named after coach John Mariucci, whom many consider, “The Godfather of Minnesota hockey.“
Despite getting back to the NCAA tournament and being a top ranked team, attendance has been an issue since the hockey team joined the Big Ten Conference.
According to Eric Vegoe of Gopher Puck Live, the average number of scanned tickets this past winter rose just one percent from the previous season.
