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18 M H J ON L I N E . C O M | J A N / F E B 2 0 2 5 BY K E V I N PAU L D U P O N T, B O S TO N G LO B E MINNESOTA'S SUCCESS SUCCESS SECRET TO Minnesota calls itself the 'State of Hockey' and it continues to prove why Photos / Getty Images This article was reprinted with permission from the Boston Globe D ECADE AFTER DECADE, the state of Minnesota continues to push record numbers through USA Hockey programs, funneling kids from public high school rinks to the US National Team Development Program, the USHL, and top NCA A Division I teams. The crème de la crème among Minnesota's public high school players, including Phil Housley, Jamie Langenbrunner, David Backes, and Brock Boeser, have found their way to the NHL. Long ago, in the 1970s and '80s, legions of Massachusetts kids followed the public high school path to grander rinks. Tom Barrasso went directly from Acton-Boxborough to the Buffalo Sabres. Needham High phenom Robbie Ftorek lit up the WHA in the mid-'70s. Mike Eruzione, captain of the 1980 Olympic gold medal squad, played for Winthrop High prior to a one-year stop at Berwick Academy, ahead of his four seasons (1973-77) as a Boston University Terrier. Kevin Stevens, recently inducted in the US Hockey Hall of Fame, played for Silver Lake High before landing at The Heights as a Boston College freshman intent on playing football in the fall of 1983.