Pond Hockey
# Pond Hockey

Pond Hockey is a 2008 American documentary film, directed by Tommy Haines, and produced by Northland Films. The film is an examination of the changing culture of pond hockey.

## Synopsis

Director Tommy Haines and his Minnesota crew chronicle the changing culture of hockey through interviews with Wayne Gretzky, Neal Broten, Sidney Crosby, and local rinkrats, interwoven with the story of the first ever U.S. Pond Hockey Championships. The tournament was composed of 100 teams; the film follows two of these teams: The Federal League Allstars and Sofa King Lazy.

## Critical reception

Pond Hockey showed at several North American film festivals and ultimately aired nationally on the NHL Network. The film was hailed as the "best and purest hockey movie ever" by ESPN's John Buccigross and one of Indiewire's "10 Great Sports Docs". The film was also included in the New York Times coverage of outdoor hockey's article "N.H.L. Ties Its Brand to Great Outdoors".

## Notable cast

* Wayne Gretzky
* Neal Broten
* John Mayasich
* Sidney Crosby
* Marian Gaborik
* Lou Nanne
* John Buccigross
* Willard Ikola
* Phil Housley
* Jeff Sorem
* John "Bug" Blooston
* Patrick Kane
* Wendell Anderson
* Krissy Wendell
* Dave Miller
* Mark Kovacich
* Rick DiPietro
* Charles McGrath
* Jack Falla
* Jordan Leopold
* Matt Henderson
* Dan Hendrickson
* P. J. Axelsson
* Jonathan Toews

## Producers

Director/Producer - Tommy Haines, Producer - JT Haines, Producer - Andrew Sherburne, Producer - Nick Deutsch, Executive Producer - Northland Films, Executive Producer - Philip Falcone

## Festivals/awards

* "Best of Fest" selection at the 2008 Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival
* Official Selection of the 2008 Rhode Island International Film Festival
* Official Selection of the 2008 Free Range Film Festival
* Winner of the "Audience Award" at the 2008 Landlocked International Film Festival
* Official Selection of the 2010 Canadian Sports Film Festival

## Philip Falcone

The executive producer, Philip Falcone, was a college hockey stand out and graduate from Harvard University, and is currently a General Partner of the Minnesota Wild.

## Filming locations

* Connecticut
* Illinois
* Minnesota
* Massachusetts
* New Jersey
* New York
* Nova Scotia
