Brock Faber has made a surplus of hockey memories in his nearly 20 years of playing—a sport he began around the age of 2 in Maple Grove.

There was the 2021 World Junior gold medal in Edmonton. “Amazing.”

Three seasons for the University of Minnesota. “Incredible.”

The 2022 Winter Olympic Games. “Surreal.”

His NHL debut for the hometown Minnesota Wild. “Dream.”

But Faber admits he has a favorite memory. A memory created when he was 15, playing Bantam AA with Osseo-Maple Grove. That year, Faber and the Crimson laid claim to the 2018 Minnesota Hockey State Championship.

“That was probably the best memory,” Faber said. “We were a team that was always so successful in Squirts and Peewees, but Bantams is a whole new level. The whole team came up all the way from Squirts and we all grew and learned.”

Osseo-Maple Grove downed Eden Prairie 7-2 in the final at Parade Ice Garden after wins over Hermantown and Wayzata.

Faber and his teammates, “some of my best friends,” had reached the top.

“It’s the Stanley Cup for a kid,” Faber recalled. “It was for me. It’s the greatest feeling in the world, being with the guys that you grew up with and played hockey with your whole life. Playing in those competitive atmospheres and those big stages—I remember both of those games like it was yesterday. Playing for your city—it’s so special when you’re at that age.”

It’s competing for State that prepared him for competition at the highest levels.

“Just the sheer amount of hockey players here, the competition. Just the growing and development aspect top to bottom. Whichever team you make, you’re competing, and that’s what is so special in Minnesota,” Faber said. “There are so many kids and so many different teams—everybody is playing at their own level and at their own pace, constantly getting better. Whether you’re on the top team or not, it really doesn’t matter.

“It pushes you. That’s what I think is so special about Minnesota. Just the amount of talent and the amount of kids here.”

But what makes hockey in Minnesota isn’t just the State Tournament or reaching the next level. It’s the lifelong memories with your neighborhood buddies, and the moments you won’t always have the words for.

“It’s the State of Hockey for a reason,” Faber said. “Kids grow up here wanting to play hockey. I’m so lucky to have grown up in the state. It’s my favorite place in the world.”