Minnetonka 15U B
Season Recap
We began the season with the "end in mind". We would focus on the two things we could control on and off the ice: our effort and our attitude. Work hard and stay positive, no matter what happens.
Our mental and physical toughness was tested early in the season when we opened with two rough district losses and a lackluster tournament in Blaine. One game in that stretch started the turnaround though. We were down 3-1 after two periods, having played exceptionally poor. In the locker room between periods, Coach challenged us to do “whatever it takes” to figure out how to play as a team. He left, and we each shared how we planned to contribute to the team’s success. It worked. We scored three goals on the first shift of the 3rd period and went on to win 5-3.
Following a couple of tough losses in early January, we hopped on a team bus and headed to Duluth for our traveling tournament. That weekend changed the trajectory of our season. The team bonding and fellowship was incredible. One player commented:
"My highlight of the season was spending the weekend up at Duluth with my team. I really enjoyed hanging out with them, joking around, getting closer and forming bonds. It was special spending time with them at the hotel and restaurant and to share the special moment of coming together and playing as a team."
A moment we will all remember from the Duluth tourney (other than watching coaches, parents, and rink attendants trying to free our bus from the snow pile in Cloquet) was when we won our game against Fort Frances. A breakaway overtime goal was a great ending to an intense game. Everyone rushed the ice to celebrate the win. One of our defenders recalled:
“We celebrated as though it had been the most important game ever, even if it had just been our first game in the tournament. Undoubtedly, that game, that last shift, had empowered us to achieve all we did later in the season.”
As we headed into Regions, we were confident and ready to give it our all. Solid wins against Brainerd-Little Falls and Forest Lake put us in the championship game against Chaska Chanhassen-Eden Prairie. One of our team Captain’s favorite moments, “was in our Region Tournament when the EP/Chaska game before us had gone into four overtimes. We were all out of the locker room cheering them on, and when they finally won, they came over next to us to celebrate. The next day we got to play them in the championship,” which we won. We were Region Champions!
We had something special on our 15U B team this year. One player, a converted gymnast, had never played a game of hockey in her life and had just learned to skate about five months before the season began. Her comments kind of say it all:
“I would say my favorite memory is scoring my first goal in my first year of hockey! When I did gymnastics, the feeling of finally getting a new skill that I had been working on for weeks was one of the best feelings ever. Scoring my first goal topped that. I remember how excited I was and how excited my team was for me. I gained confidence from scoring my first goal, and it made me a better player. Even though it was my first year of hockey, it’s safe to say that hockey is now and forever will be my favorite sport.”
Thanks for an exciting and memorable season!