It’s been a decade since Butch Johnson brought USHL hockey to Cedar Rapids, and by all accounts the team has provided one of the best hockey experiences at the junior level.
It’s been a decade since Butch Johnson brought USHL hockey to Cedar Rapids, and by all accounts the team has provided one of the best hockey experiences at the junior level.
The Cedar Rapids Gazette took a look back at a decade of Roughrider hockey, going back to the day when Butch Johnson, the owner of a USHL team in Mason City, visited City Hall and offered to move his team to Cedar Rapids. The only catch: there was no arena in the city for a team.
No problem. A year later the 4,200-seat Cedar Rapids Ice Arena opened, and since then the Roughriders have been a cornerstone franchise in the USHL. True, there were some cost overruns — the final tally was $13 million, and over $6 million is owed on the bonds — but overall it’s been a success.
Here’s an account of how Butch Johnson sold the city on the arena. Residents opine on the state of hockey in Cedar Rapids. Mark Carlson has been around for the whole ride.
