2004 Red Baron WCHA Final Five Is Record-Setting
March 20, 2004
SAINT PAUL/MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - The Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) announced tonight that the 2004 Red Baron WCHA Final Five set a new all-time tournament attendance record, as 82,564 fans came to see this year's tournament at the Xcel Energy Center. Attendance records were set in four out of five sessions this year, with a new all-time single-game WCHA attendance record set on consecutive nights.
The University of Minnesota vs. University of Minnesota-Duluth hockey game on Friday, March 19, set a new tournament record for single-game attendance (19,208), only to be outdone the following night by the Broadmoor Trophy championship game. Saturday night's Minnesota vs North Dakota championship match-up drew 19,306 fans, becoming the largest crowd ever to see a WCHA hockey game in the league's 52-year history.
The 2004 Red Baron WCHA Final Five attendance by session was:
| SESSION | ATTENDANCE | PREVIOUS RECORD |
| Thursday, March 18 (Alaska Anchorage vs Colorado College) | 14,123 | 14,305 (2003) * |
| Friday, March 19 (Alaska Anchorage vs North Dakota) | 15,022 | 12,438 (2002) |
| Friday, March 19 (Minnesota vs Minnesota-Duluth) | 19,208* | 18,523 (2002) |
| Saturday, March 20 (Alaska Anchorage vs Minnesota-Duluth) | 14,905 | 12,961 (2002) |
| Saturday, March 20 (Minnesota vs North Dakota) | 19,306* | 18,126 (2002) |
* sellout; $ WCHA Final Five and WCHA all-time single game attendance record
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