UMD Fans Ready to Cheer on Bulldogs in Buffalo
Just because the Frozen Four is far away, doesn't mean there will be a lack of UMD fans in attendance
BUFFALO, N.Y. – There may not be as many UMD fans in Buffalo as there were at last year’s Frozen Four in St. Paul, but the seats in KeyBank Center are bound to be filled with a lot of maroon and gold during Thursday’s semifinal game.
One man who will be there might just be the biggest Bulldogs fan in Buffalo.
“I’m always wearing this gear, always wearing this stuff so I’m always promoting it. I’m the only guy promoting it, Duluth,” said Tom Iafallo at his Buffalo bar.
Most taverns in Western New York are decorated with gear from the hometown hockey team, the Buffalo Sabres.
But Iafallo’s Towne Hall bar is filled with merchandise from the Los Angeles Kings, the NHL team his son plays for.
“It’s great having him in the NHL but those four years were kind of the highlight,” he said recalling the days his son, Alex Iafallo, was a Bulldogs hockey star from 2013-2017.
He says Alex chose UMD in part because Duluth reminded him of Buffalo.
“Small city on the lakes, both cold, windy, you got lake snows and hockey, that’s what they both have, hockey,” described Iafallo.
Now that his son’s NHL season is over, it’s all about the Bulldogs for Iafallo.
He’ll be at their Thursday semifinal game and, if they win a second consecutive title, he’d like his bar to become the unofficial UMD party spot for fans and families.
“Hopefully they come here too. Hopefully we get to see some of the parents and we can do our party here like we did in Chicago,” said Iafallo.
If another Bulldogs championship is earned, among those celebrating will be Frank and Bonnie Siiro, a Proctor couple who have been to every Frozen Four since 1989.
“Well I think they got the talent to do it and they got great goaltending,” said Frank Siiro, describing the team’s chances to win it all.
The Siiros say watching the event on TV is okay, but nothing beats seeing a UMD championship live.
“Just to see the crowd reaction. It’s a lot of fun, lot of fun,” said Siiro.
