The Bantam A team, consisting of 13 8th & 9th graders, finished regular district play 12-3-1, beating the #1 seed Albert Lea in the semi-final round to guarantee a spot in the tournament. The Bantam B team, also consisting of 13 8th & 9th graders, finished regular district play 11-4-1 and took their first season win against #2 seed Dodge County, 4-3, to secure their spot in the tournament. The PeeWee B team, with 14 6th& 7th graders, took the win over Austin in the semi-final round to secure their spot. They finished regular district play 11-1-2.

Sorenson goes on to say “As interest in hockey continues to grow in Northfield, our program is proud of the many talented and hardworking young skaters coming up at every age level. With the growing number of competitive teams in youth hockey, we have had to purchase more than 100 hours of ice time from the Faribault arenas this year, and expect that trend to continue into the foreseeable future – especially with the incredible success that our youth and High School hockey teams have had in the last few years. It is a great problem to have, and we look forward to growth in our local ice facilities to match the growth in the sports facilities around the community. Youth Hockey in the State of Hockey, and the City of Northfield, is alive and well.”

The NHA has over 220 rostered players this year. District 9 is comprised of 14 associations in southeastern Minnesota, and Minnesota Hockey is comprised of over 140 associations in 14 districts. At each respective level of play, only 32 teams statewide advance to their region tournament, 8 teams to each region. The top 2 teams in each region will advance to the Minnesota Hockey State Tournament.

Congratulations to these players, their coaches and parents for representing Northfield in the Drive to State!