EAST LANSING, Mich. — The pristine ice surface left overnight was so inviting that there were days when Mick Messner woke up early at his family's Near West Side Madison home to get in a few minutes of skating and stickhandling before heading to school.

Other times, he and his friends from the neighborhood would peek out the front window and see some kids playing hockey on the rink, then hustle to get skates on and join them.

"That's where I learned to have fun with it, and that's why I like the game so much," Messner said. "Playing out there is a lot of fun. It brings you back to when you were younger."