Pucks and Pawns - Nakamura Teams With Hockey
Chess and hockey may not seem like a natural fit, unless you're the U.S. number one. Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, a longtime fan of the NHL, will finally get his chance to play chess at a hockey game. This Sunday, March 16, he will host a chess exhibition before the Florida Panthers home game in Sunrise, Florida.
Previously, Nakamura has been invited down to the field as a special guest at St. Louis Cardinals (baseball) and St. Louis Rams (American football) games. But if you've ever talked sports with him, his hockey knowledge is probably better than yours.
Starting at 1:00 p.m., two hours before gametime, you can play chess with fellow fans. As part of the "Checkmate Pack", which is $25, you get a ticket to the game and you'll also get a chance to meet the highest-rated player in U.S. history. He's also the owner if a shiny and new 2900 bullet rating on Chess.com. There will also be appearances by the Lady Panthers and Stanley C. Panther.
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Mike Klein began playing chess at the age of four in Charlotte, NC. In 1986, he lost to Josh Waitzkin at the National Championship featured in the movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer." A year later, Mike became the youngest member of the very first All-America Chess Team, and was on the team a total of eight times. In 1988, he won the K-3 National Championship, and eventually became North Carolina's youngest-ever master. In 1996, he won clear first for under-2250 players in the top section of the World Open. Mike has taught chess full-time for a dozen years in New York City and Charlotte, with his students and teams winning many national championships. He now works at Chess.com as a Senior Journalist and at ChessKid.com as the Chief Chess Officer. In 2012, 2015, and 2018, he was awarded Chess Journalist of the Year by the Chess Journalists of America. He has also previously won other awards from the CJA such as Best Tournament Report, and also several writing awards for mainstream newspapers. His chess writing and personal travels have now brought him to more than 85 countries.
