Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/875483
M H J O N L I N E . C O M | O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 08 WHY THEY'RE AWESOME As the Grand Rapids boys' high school hockey team loaded up the bus for their trip to the state tournament in Saint Paul last March, community members arrived to give them a proper sendoff. And when the bus came back with the state tournament championship trophy, they held a welcome home party. It doesn't get much more Minnesotan than that. During away games, hundreds, sometimes thousands of fans hit the road to support their local squad. And when Grand Rapids makes it to the Class 2A Section 7 final at Amsoil Arena in Duluth, it's normal to see the Thunderhawks and their opponent fill up the college arena. At the younger levels, it's common to see community members show up, regardless of who is playing. "We have a fan base that is equal to no other school in the state," said Chris Marinucci, the new boys' high school hockey coach and Grand Rapids Amateur Hockey Association board member. "Hockey up here is more like a religion than a sport." This year, the Thunderhawks' rabid fan base was rewarded as Grand Rapids made a miraculous run to the Minnesota State High School Hockey Tournament at Xcel Energy Center and won the school's first state championship in 37 years, defeating fellow northerners from Moorhead. "For these guys to pull that off was really something," said Marinucci, who was an assistant on the 2016-17 state championship team. "It was a deserved accomplishment for a deserving community." The trickle-down effect to the association's youth players is just as impressive. HOME ICE: IRA Civic Center DISTRICT: Thunderhawks NICKNAME: PRESIDENT: Sean Colter 411 12 2016 REGISTRATION NUMBERS: Grand Rapids State of Hockey Spotlight of STATE HOCKEY M E TR O A R E A