Mike Green Drops Puck at Outdoor Classic

HERSHEY, PA – Mike Green speaks with Dimity Orlov at the Outdoor Classic (Kyle Mace – Sweetest Hockey on Earth)

Over five years after playing his last game for the Hershey Bears, Mike Green returned to Chocolate Town to drop the ceremonial first puck at the Outdoor Classic. The Calgary native played 108 games in a Bears sweater, with 40 of them in the playoffs.

Green racked up 51 points in the two seasons he played in Hershey, winning a Calder Cup and going to another finals too. “I got a lot of memories here. Playing at the Giant Center, wining a Calder Cup my first year. When they asked me to come back it was a no-brainer.”

HERSHEY, PA – Washington Capitals defenseman Mike Green (left) speaks with former teammate Louis Robitaille and Hershey Bears GM Doug Yingst at the 2013 AHL Outdoor Classic (Kyle Mace – Sweetest Hockey on Earth)

Green was part of a legendary Bears team lead by many future NHL-ers including Eric Fehr, Tomas Fleischmann, Brooks Laich, and Boyd Gordon. Recent Bears Graham Mink, Chris Bourque, and current Bears captain Boyd Kane where all also apart of that team.

Just a night before, Green played his first game in the 2013 NHL Season in Tampa Bay. “The game is so much faster. It takes usually a period to adjust and we did. It’s unfortunate that we lost the game, hopefully it was the first one to get the nerves out and we can get on a roll from there.”

Green caught up with many familiar faces like former teammate Louie Robitaille and trainer Dan “Beaker” Stuck throughout the night.

The Capitals are back in action for their first home game of the season at Verizon Center when the take on the Winnipeg Jets.