History was made on the ice on Sunday night when the Jerusalem Capitals won in an overtime 7-6 tiebreaker against HC Tel Aviv at UBS Arena in Belmont Park, to the cheers of Israel supporters in the first-ever game of its kind for the Israel Elite Hockey League.
“I saw it happening and wanted to go,” said Shay Feldman, a Queens College sophomore who brought her classmates to the event. “It’s my 16th time here this season, as I’m the only Islanders fan among the Jewish students.”
Seeing promotions for the IEHL USA Challenge Cup in Jewish newspapers and social media, she organized the Chabad of Queens College, which brought a dozen students to the event, along with Rabbi Shaul and Tsippa Wertheimer, who cheered on the two teams to the tunes of Jewish pop songs.
“This feels more spacious, it’s cleaner,” said senior student Craig Speiser, who majors in finance. “I like the atmosphere here. I love Israel so much, to be in Queens College and support hockey.”
Stuart Gourdji, an alumnus of their school, brought the game to the local arena, as he works on the Islanders ice crew and spends part of the year in Israel as the coach of the Tel Aviv team.
“This is a dream,” he said. “Coaching in front of, I think we had 8,000 people. Truly incredible hearing Hebrew songs at a hockey game, the music, the spirit, the atmosphere.” His parents, wife, and children sat in the front row, surrounded by their West Hempstead neighbors, expressing pride in the event’s success.
“It’s nice that it’s close. A lot more people came than I thought,” said Aleezah Cohen, who attended with her husband Moshe, their children, and friends from the Chabad of West Hempstead, where Rabbi Yossi Lieberman urged everyone to attend. Looking around her, Cohen noted, “I feel like I’m in shul.”
A couple of rows behind Cohen, Elliot Chiger said that while Madison Square Garden has the history and concerts, UBS Arena is 14 minutes from his home and it’s new, having opened in 2021. “The community really showed up. All the shuls of West Hempstead and I’ve seen people here from New Jersey and Philly,” he said.
The ceremonial puck was dropped by Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, welcoming the teams to his corner of Long Island. Another honoree on the ice was longtime Lawrence resident Ivan Gluck, 87, a Holocaust survivor from Hungary who immigrated to New York as a child.
“Growing up in Manhattan, he frequently attended New York Rangers games at the old Madison Square Garden and formed friendships with several players,” his son Kenny Gluck wrote. “Through dedication and perseverance, my father learned the game, securing ice time whenever possible, and eventually earned a tryout with the Detroit Red Wings through his hockey connections.”
Faced with a choice between professional hockey and keeping Shabbos, Ivan Gluck chose the observant life while keeping his connections to the sport and passing on the passion to his son. “As a teenager, we spent two weeks during the summers at the Concord Resort in the Catskills, where we skated and hung out with numerous legendary NHL players, including Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Luc Robitaille, Larry Robinson, and many others,” Gluck noted. “My father’s passion for hockey has endured, and to this day, he continues to play whenever possible.”
Jerusalem assistant coach David Warsofsky was impressed by Gluck’s presence on the ice and the game that followed. “I think it was a moment everyone remembers the rest of their lives,” Warsofsky said to the NHL. “A lot of these guys haven’t been able to play in an arena like this. It’s a historic moment for Israeli hockey.”
Prior to his role in coaching the holy city’s team, he played for four NHL teams between 2011 and 2021, followed by a spot on the 2022 USA Olympic team, and playing for Ingolstadt and Augsburg teams in Germany.
For every goal scored by Gourdji’s team, Omer Adam’s party hit Tel Aviv rang out in the arena. The team outshot Jerusalem 61-57, in a close game that included two brief fistfights. Among the Jerusalem stars watched closely were Denis Zaychik, who scored the winning shot 2:14 in overtime, and 16-year-old Nikita Zitserman, who is expected to appear in the 2026 NHL draft, which would be a first for an Israeli player.
The arrival of Israeli hockey in America testifies to the sport’s growing popularity in that country, particularly among American and Russian-speaking olim, who dream of expanding the fan base to Israeli youth, American Jewish audiences, competing at the Olympics, and playing for the NHL.
“The attendance is much more than I’ve expected,” said Robert Weiss, formerly of Brooklyn who now lives in Netanya. He attended the game with his son-in-law and grandson. “It’s much more modern than Nassau Coliseum.”
Queens resident Terri Kalker brought her husband to the game as a birthday present, where she engaged in another popular pastime. “It drew crowds of all different types. You played Jewish geography, it felt like the Ishay Ribo concert at Madison Square Garden,” she said. There were multiple minyanim during the break and a variety of kosher food options.
“It was an awesome night. Well-played, well-attended, a nail-biter to the end,” said Elan Kornblum, whose Great Kosher Restaurants Media Group was among the sponsors. “We all were winners. Hopefully, it will be an annual thing, and the upper section will be opened. It was very well done. Very professional.”
By Sergey Kadinsky
