As September comes and goes, hockey season is just around the corner. Rookie camps are starting and preseason NHL games are next. As teams fill their rosters out and the temperature drops, teams are thinking of fun, interesting, new, and/or classic ways to fill the stands.
With that being said, the Iowa Heartlanders have announced the promotions that will join their already announced Five-Star Ticket Package, Pride Night, and Military Appreciation Night.
Here is what we know so far:
The Five Star Ticket Package Provides Fans with tickets to five special promotional nights and an exclusive Iowa Heartlanders Cooler. Here are the games it will cover:
Saturday, October 19th, Opening Weekend Plus Block Party: While this is not the first game of the season (That is the night before), this game will feature a giveaway of a light-up rally towel and will be part of the Lander’s introduction of their new white home uniform, as well as celebrating the team’s hopes for the new season with a pregame block party.
Saturday, November 30th, Crispy Bacon Night: Iowa’s first game after Thanksgiving will celebrate the breakfast favorite Iowa does best: Bacon. For Crispy Bacon Night, a pregame party will take place at the Hyatt next door, and fans will receive a Bacon Boom Stick. The game will feature specialty concessions and in-game “Bacon Activities,” as the team puts it. With 4 million people living in Iowa compared to 23 million pigs, fans may want to secure their tickets to this one before the pigs of Iowa beat them to it.
Saturday, January 18th, Wild, Wild Midwest Night: For this celebration of all things country, fans will have another chance to enjoy a pregame party before receiving a cowbell on the way into the stadium. While the loud atmosphere this provides will likely help the hometown Heartlanders, fans with sensitive ears may want to bring earplugs.
Saturday, February 15th, Stick it to Cancer Night: Hockey Fights Cancer has been one of the most successful initiatives in the history of sports promotions. Hockey teams at every level have joined in and found ways to Stick it to Cancer between fundraisers for research, aiding the well-being of current cancer patients, honoring cancer survivors, and remembering those we have lost. The Heartlanders will be having a Lavender-Out, where fans will be asked to show that they can Stick it to Cancer with a sea of purple, which will be joined by pom-poms to cheer the team on. The team will also be wearing special jerseys for this game, though those are yet to be unveiled.
Saturday, April 12th, Fan Appreciation Night: For fans who may remember, this game was the Heartlanders’ first sellout for its 2024 edition and featured a pregame tailgate with music, food, drinks, and a blowout victory against the Western Conference Champion Kansas City Cyclones. Fans will hope that this game can also serve as a celebration of a Landers’ playoff qualification.
Saturday, November 9th, Salute to Service: The Iowa Class Battleships were once the most feared ships to ever set to sea. With this, local businesses will have the chance to donate tickets to veterans with the Tickets for Troops Initiative, as shown below. Fans can pre-order and even customize their jersey that celebrates those who fight for the nation’s well-being.
Friday, January 17th, Pride Night: Iowa City/Coralville is considered to be the “most gay-friendly city in Iowa”. With this, Head Coach and General Manager Derek Damon emphasized the importance of this game on the Heartlanders Schedule. This game was among the highest attended for the season in its two previous renditions and will look to continue this success. Joined with a special jersey for this night that fans can pre-order at the same link as the Salute to Service jersey order, past versions of this game have included pride initiatives at games and even a Zamboni Drag Show.
While those seven games were the ones that were announced prior to the end of August, fans will be given 25 other opportunities to celebrate the people, culture, and history of Iowa.
Friday, October 18th, Opening Night: Fans at this game will get to see the Heartlanders start their new campaign and have a chance to be the first judges of the new home uniform the team will wear while cheering against one of the team’s biggest rivals, the Fort Wayne Komets.
Thursday, October 24th, Marvel Night: This will be the third edition of the Heartlander Marvel Night. The two previous games saw the team wear Rocket the Raccoon and Captain America jerseys, respectively. For this game, the team will wear Miles Morales Spider-Man jerseys (hopefully, this doesn’t spoil any movies or comic books for you). The other versions of this night saw fans receive posters, get to take pictures with their favorite heroes, and celebrate their love of Marvel and Stan Lee’s creations.
Thursday, October 30th, Puck or Treat: for this spooky night, an arena full of costumes, candy, and old-fashioned Halloween fun will join the Heartlanders in their hopes of taking down the Bloomington Bison.
Friday, November 15th, HAWK-EY Night: For this celebration of the University of Iowa Hawkeyes, spectators will have their chance to bring a different set of black and gold to the arena to celebrate their team and community. Herky the Hawk and other University of Iowa athletes and alumni may also show their faces!
Saturday, November 16th, Hard Hats on Ice: While the team will not be wearing hard hats instead of their helmets, this day will be a celebration of the construction workers of Iowa and those who (literally) build our communities.
Saturday, November 24th, Rumble at the Rink: Xtream Arena is the venue for the Soldier Salute, a famous college wrestling tournament that teams and wrestlers from around the United States hope to be invited to for a chance to compete. Just a month before this tournament, the Heartlanders will be offering a preview of this, which will include wrestling duals from local Iowa groups. Hockey Fights will be hoped for, but are not guaranteed.
Sunday, December 1st, STEM Skate-Off: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics are a bigger part of hockey than anyone may realize. To celebrate this, hands-on experiments will be done and local STEM professionals and aspiring professionals will be on-site to talk about how they innovate.
Wednesday, December 11th, The Best Field Trip Ever: Those who have had the pleasure of attending this game know that the elementary school students from the Iowa City-Cedar Rapids corridor can get loud. For this special 10:35 a.m. puck drop, the students will be joined by their teachers and all will have access to educational activities such as hockey trivia and fun facts.
Friday, December 13th, Teddy Bear Toss and Wild Affiliation Night: This double-whammy promotion night will give fans a chance to give to children in need in local children’s hospitals by throwing stuffed animals onto the ice after the team scores its first goal and meet Iowa Wild mascot Crash as the Heartlanders celebrate their renewed affiliation with the Iowa and Minnesota Wild.
Saturday, December 21st, Christmas in Coralville: For the team’s last home game of the 2024 calendar year, this festive event will see the halls of Xtream Arena decked with boughs of holly and other staples of the winter holidays. Fans should remember not to be like Flick from A Christmas Story: Ice is cold, and your tongue will stick if you lick the metal parts of the boards!
Friday, January 10th, Golden Ticket Night: For the first home game of 2025, Roald Dahl’s classic, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, will be celebrated in Xtream Arena. Fans will recall University of Iowa Alum Gene Wilder’s magnificent performance as Willy Wonka as they buy concessions in their hopes of finding the golden ticket. While the book offered five tickets to the whole world, the Iowa Heartlanders are choosing to offer one ticket to one of their fans to make sure it falls into the right hands. The prizes the ticket offers are to be determined, but a lifetime supply of chocolate may not be on the table.
Saturday, January 11th, Dash’s Birthday Party and Kids Takeover: Many local sports fans may have seen the Cedar Rapids Kernels kid PA announcer that they do once per home game. For this night, Dash and his mascot friends from around Iowa will be celebrating Dash’s birthday in one of the most attended promotional nights each season. In addition, kids will be running the show, with a game experience directed towards children and potentially even kids helping out with gameday operations.
Also, now you will have a chance to celebrate your birthday with the Iowa Heartlanders:
Sunday, January 12th, Heartland Heroes Day: This a popular event at Xtream Arena. At this game, the firefighters and police officers of Eastern Iowa are honored for their service to the local community. These people make a difference in the community and the firefighters typically allow people to get hands-on experience with their equipment.
Friday, January 31st, Teacher Appreciation Night: To round off January, Teachers from around Iowa will be honored for all they do to raise the next generations. Fun Fact: Many Iowa Heartlanders season ticket holders are teachers!
Saturday, February 1st, Women in Sports Night:
On and off the playing surfaces, the state of Iowa and the local university of Iowa are where women’s sports have always grown and now are proving that they are here to stay and thrive. With this, women athletes and non-athlete sports professionals from across the state will be honored and celebrated for their dedication, commitment, and achievements. The first person to ever work for the Iowa Heartlanders was a woman too!
Wednesday, February 12th, Sustainability and Waste Management Night: for this brand-new event, the Heartlanders will be emphasizing the impact people can have on the environment and demonstrating how you can make a positive impact on the ecosystem. With this, garbage collectors and waste management professionals will be celebrated for the work they do to keep Iowa clean and safe!
Friday, February 14th, Love on Ice Night: Isn’t this cute? The Heartlanders will be hosting the Toledo Walleye in a celebration of everything Valentine’s Day. Feel free to write your favorite player a valentine, but don’t expect a lot of love to be found on the ice.
Friday, March 21st, Luck of the Landers: 2024’s St. Hat Trick’s Night was one the fans showed out to in mass. On this Lucky Night, crowds of green will be greeted by festive music and activities along with a celebration of Irish Heritage. It’s going to be Shamrockin’!
Saturday, March 22nd, Decades Night: For this turn-back-the-clock night, everything vintage will be celebrated from the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. Fans will get a retro game atmosphere and have the chance to see some good, old-fashioned hockey.
Sunday, March 30th, Happy Gilmore Day: As the fairways start to open for the spring and summer, Adam Sandler, Julie Bowen, and Bob Barker’s performances will be celebrated on this golf and movie-themed night. Fans may also want to watch the sequel post-game. Remember when you’re swinging a hockey stick: “It’s all in the hips!”
Friday, April 4th, Star Wars Night: Everyone knows that the team would have waited one more month for this celebration if the regular season went into May. While “April the 4th be with you” just doesn’t sound right, It’ll have to do. The full Star Wars experience will look to see the Heartlanders Strike Back after their defeat in last season’s edition. It is not confirmed whether or not sticks will be swapped out for lightsabers this season. This will also be leg one of a two-part tribute to James Earl Jones that will celebrate the iconic actor and voice of multiple generations.
Saturday, April 5th, Bluey Night: It seems that a new blue dog comes around every generation to teach kids to be kind and think critically. Last season, the Wichita Thunder broke the internet of the hockey world when they had Bluey Night. The Iowa Heartlanders will seek to capture the imagination and take it a step forward, possibly being the first team to wear Bluey-Themed jerseys.
Friday, April 11th: Field of Dreams Night: “People will come. They’ll come to Iowa…” to see the Iowa Heartlanders. In this second-to-last game of the regular season, the Heartlanders will celebrate this magical piece of Iowa history and the famous baseball movie starring Kevin Costner, Ray Liotta, and James Earl Jones that people around the globe love. Ideally, Iowa will use this night to go the distance and show that It’s Not Heaven, It’s Iowa Heartlanders Hockey.
Heartlanders Fans can buy the five-star ticket package now or wait for September 23rd for single-game tickets to celebrate as many of these events as possible.
