The Boston Bruins, Boston Bruins Foundation and City of Boston this week hosted a ceremony to celebrate the reopening of a local community park after upgrades, including the addition of a street hockey rink.
DeFilippo Park, located in Boston’s North End neighborhood and near the Delaware North-owned-and-operated TD Garden, has been updated to include an all-new street hockey rink, basketball court and multi-sport play area, funded by the Boston Bruins Foundation, National Hockey League and City of Boston.
The updates are part of an ongoing initiative to improve the quality and accessibility of hockey rinks around the city.
Delaware North CEO Charlie Jacobs, City of Boston Parks and Recreation Commissioner Ryan Woods and Boston Bruins Foundation President Bob Sweeney were all in attendance for the event, which formally unveiled the new DeFilippo Park and also included hockey clinics and other activities for kids.
“This has been two or three years in the making,” Jacobs said in an interview with Bruins.com during the event. “It’s been a great afternoon to christen this rink with these kids. This is what it’s all about, teaching kids the game. Getting exposure, being active in the community.”
The event included remarks from Bruins and City of Boston executives and was followed by a ceremonial puck drop and ribbon cutting ceremony. Following the ceremony, City of Boston representatives and former Bruins player Andrew Raycroft hosted a Willie O’Ree Street Hockey Clinic where kids learned the fundamentals of hockey and participated in a scrimmage.
“Street hockey is a great way to get introduced to the sport,” Jacobs added. “It’s been very successful and has a very long tradition, especially here in Massachusetts. I think rinks like this in urban areas are critical to get kids exposure to the game.”
“To grow the game is a big part of the Bruins, the NHL, the Bruins Foundation and what we want to do,” Sweeney said. “It’s been tough the last few years with the pandemic but we have had six facilities open up, this one being the marquee [facility].”
“We’re not only looking in the city of Boston but outside the city to continue to look for opportunities. We just committed to Gloucester for a state-of-the-art roller hockey rink that hopefully will be online next summer.”
Previous parks around the greater Boston area that have been restored include Athol, Franklin, Hanover, East Boston and South Boston.
Watch a video recap of the event here.
PHOTO CAPTION (above): Delaware North CEO Charlie Jacobs (center) cuts the ribbon for the new DeFilippo Park in Boston with Bob Sweeney (center right), president of the Boston Bruins Foundation, and Ryan Woods (center left), City of Boston parks and recreation commissioner.
PHOTO CAPTION (below): Delaware North CEO Charlie Jacobs (center) drops a ceremonial street hockey ball with youth hockey players to formally open the new community park in Boston’s North End neighborhood.