For one game in January, the U.S National U-18 Team will become the Galactic Empire.
The team, which plays in the USHL as part of the National Team Development Program, will be hosting its third annual Star Wars Night when the Waterloo Black Hawks visit the Ann Arbor Ice Cube on Jan. 18.
“This is the third straight season we’ve held this fantastic promotion,” Scott Monaghan, senior director of operations with the NTDP, said in a press release. “Each year this night has grown and it’s now one of the most popular games on the schedule.”
The event will feature a variety of promotions based on George Lucas‘ iconic films, but the centerpiece will be the team’s jerseys, which will feature the Star Wars logo and a oversized, wraparound image of a menacing Darth Vader. The jerseys will then be auctioned after the game, with all proceeds benefiting the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor, Mich.
High-level junior leagues like the USHL usually remain above the absurd gimmicks that minor league hockey is known for, but promotions like this show that these teams still know how to have some fun.
Check out the unis in the photo below.
Photo via Facebook/USA Hockey
