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Nick Perbix Elk River Sam Malinksi Lakeville Sam Malinski stayed through his senior year at Lakeville North, spent two years in juniors, and then played four seasons at Cornell before signing with the Colorado Avalanche. "As a kid, you live and breathe hockey there," said Tufte. "I grew up watching my hometown go to the state tournaments, my brother made it to four of them. Blaine was always a powerhouse. The way it worked, if our school was in the state tournament, the school basically shut down and every- one went to the games." In many towns, particularly up north and across the Iron Range, explained Langenbrunner, it 's t y pical for high schools to have an indoor rink on cam- pus. They also often have adjacent outdoor sheets, usually suitable for skating by the time Thanksgiving approaches. It's a long season with a lot of available ice. "My high school had five outdoor sheets," recalled Koepke, who, like Tufte, eventual- ly played for the University of Minnesota Duluth. "We had the indoor rink, and the outdoor sheets were all back behind it. We'd practice out there, especially when we were younger, no joke, eight out of 10 times. All the time after school. Then when we got older and indoor practice was later in the day, we'd go out right after school and skate outdoors with each other for four or five hours." That outdoor time, unregimented and unsuper vised, is something kids rare- ly experience in the increasingly balmy Bay State. Climate change has changed our game. Outdoor ice allows kids time to experiment, hone their skills, think out- side the standard set of coaching drills. "Huge, awesome," said Koepke, musing over the value of those outdoor workouts, "because you're on the ice and working on stuff, but you're also having fun with your buddies. It keeps hockey fun." Montgomery, rarely successful in entic- ing Minnesota kids to look beyond their hometown borders, said he believes the state's overall family-centered culture plays a large part in keeping the high school game thriving. "Public education is also among the highest ranked [in the country]," added Montgomery. "It's just a really good family state. It's a family-centered culture that, if people leave the state, they come back." "You're playing competitive games in really good environments, and you can still stay at home," added Langenbrunner, emphasizing his point with a chuckle. "And one other part that probably isn't talked about enough is that it's affordable. It doesn't matter if you are a doctor's kid or manager at McDonald's, they can all afford to do it. To play high school hockey in Minnesota, it may cost you 200 bucks. It's whatever they charge to play a high school sport." His Cloquet High on-ice workouts, recalled Langenbrunner, lasted upward of three hours a day. Some 30-plus years later, costs have cut back the time a lit- tle, he said, but otherwise the high school game remains the same as it did when he was dreaming of the pros. "But still, the opportunity and the chance to play maybe more up the lineup than you would on a more stacked junior team," mused Langenbrunner, "or a more stacked Triple A team, is there for the high school kid. The depth of these teams may not be as good, but the top-end players are still there." And they just keep coming.