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OCTOBER 2026 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM // 57 there's a welcoming environment." The Warrior Classic featured four champions across four dif- ferent tiers (3-6). The New England Battalion placed second in Tier 4 with a 3-2 record. They lost to the undefeated Pittsburgh Warriors Gold 3-1 in the final. "I thought we brought a competitive team," Callahan said. "Obviously, it wasn't about the winning for us, it was about rep- resenting our foundation. That was winning in and of itself." Callahan, an Army veteran and Boston's co-founder, came away impressed with the event. "Really, everyone we spoke to was high praise on the tourna- ment, each other's teams, and then helping each other out," he said. "It wasn't just one team. It was all of us together." Boston Warriors president Justin Frankel noted that the organization started in 2023 and finally played in its first Warrior Classic this year. Frankel added that the journey was worthwhile. "It kind of took a while to gain traction, get commitment from guys and the travel aspect of things," said Frankel, an Army veteran. "A lot of guys in our program, we don't have a lot of funding. So, we kind of pick and choose what we can do and how many guys are available and who can pitch in some for travel cost. Everything kind of aligned for this." The Boston Warriors reached the Tier 5 final before losing 7-1 to the Minnesota Warriors North. Boston finished 5-2. "All my guys had an absolute blast," Frankel said. "It really gave us the [opportunity] to [advance] our program and show that we're around. It was well worth the money and well worth putting everything together to get out there." Frankel added that pictures his team took at the Warrior Classic featured lots of smiling faces. And why not? They were among their brothers and sisters. "We're talking to those guys [from other teams] after the games, before the other games, wherever around the rink," Frankel recalled. "Two of my guys actually served with two guys on [other] teams. It's pretty special when things like that happen." The Flower City Warriors were able to send two teams to the Warrior Classic because of the program's proximity to their home in Rochester, New York. "Having a tournament in Utica makes it a lot easier for us to travel to because it basically eliminates the travel cost," said Flower City president Chas Belfield, another Army veteran. "It was really kind of a major get for us to be able to just [say], 'OK everybody, drive two hours down the road.'" Flower City finished third in Tier 3 at 4-2, while its Tier 5 team was 0-5. Tier Champion Runner-up "It was certainly an experience," Belfied said. "I certainly hope we'll be going to future Classics. We're certainly trying to ramp up our fundraising efforts so we can do these kinds of things more often." All three programs plan to be at the New England Sports Center in Marlborough, Massachusetts, April 22-25, 2027, for the USA Hockey Warrior Hockey National Championships. "I want to be at every national and Classic from here on out," said Frankel. "No matter where it is." P Tier 3 Tier 4 Tier 5 Tier 6 Tampa bay Lightning Warriors White Pittsburgh Warriors Gold Minnesota Warriors North Tampa Bay Lightning Warriors Blue Buffalo Warriors New England Battalion Boston Warriors Philadelphia Flyers Warriors D-1