Feature Story

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Staying home for the last hurrah

By Adam Somers

Do what is right, do your best and care about others are values every hockey team should carry. At the Marshall School in Duluth those values are not only carried on the ice, but in the fabric of everyday school life. However, many Minnesota high school players are carrying out their values on the road, not in their home schools.

A growing trend in Minnesota is high school hockey players defecting early to junior leagues such as the United States Hockey League (USHL) and North American Hockey League (NAHL). While the players still attend and graduate high school abroad, they are leaving behind not only their family and friends, but also their school and teammates.

One school that has offset this trend is Duluth Marshall, whose players stay in high school and graduate before leaving for juniors or the college ranks.

“Hermantown has lost kids and so has Hibbing and Duluth East,” Marshall head coach Brendan Flaherty said. “Kids are leaving early all around, but we’ve been fortunate.”

It should be known that Marshall’s fortunes are aided with the success of the program. The Hilltoppers have reached the state tournament four times this decade so far, including the last three years, making it to the championship game the last two years. This year, they have been one of the best teams in Class A, ranked near the top of the state all season.

However, success isn’t necessarily the catalyst to retaining players. There are plenty of examples of kids who have won individual accolades or state championships who still leave early for juniors.

Hockey is unique from other varsity sports where kids are able to play on the junior level before graduating high school. Because of this, there can be added pressure from higher ranks to advance players at a younger age and, according to Flaherty, it starts at the very top.

“It appears to be trickle down effect, from the pros to college, college to juniors and juniors to high school kids.”

While it is getting more uncommon for high school players to go straight to college hockey, especially Division I without a stop in juniors first, the opportunities to play junior hockey are still there after graduating high school.

“You can always play juniors. You can play until you are 21 years old,” explained Marshall alumni Rob Bordson, who currently skates at the University of Minnesota Duluth.

“There is no rush to get into that league and plus you are moving away from home, away from all of your friends and family. I think it is a lot better to play in your hometown and with people you are familiar with.”

Bordson waited until he graduated from Marshall before he tried out and played with Cedar Rapids of the USHL. It was then UMD contacted him to come back home for college and play with the Bulldogs.

The experience of high school and playing with his friends is something that is irreplaceable for Bordson, as well as playing for a state championship.

“The state tournaments are one of the most exciting events across the United States,” said Bordson. “When you make it to state, it is the best feeling in the world.”

Tom Paine is currently seeing the benefits of staying in high school. A senior at Marshall, Paine is helping lead the Hilltoppers to yet another spring trip to St. Paul. Paine credits Marshall’s advanced academic and athletic programs for preparing him for life after graduation, something he wouldn’t necessarily receive if he were to leave early for juniors.

While he hasn’t been offered to leave early, Paine doesn’t think he would if given the chance.

“With Duluth Marshall, with Brendan as our coach – a great coach – and with a great group of guys, I honestly don’t think I would leave.”

The structure of high school is something that cannot be replaced. While players such as Bordson, who waited to play juniors, can treat the situation as going away to college, many players are only juniors or seniors in high school. The relationships also aren’t necessarily as close in juniors as in the high school ranks.

“I think they pay a lot more attention (in high school),” Paine said. “We have meetings, we set goals. It’s not just where you show up and play hockey.”

Paine also thinks the competitiveness of Minnesota hockey is something that cannot be matched on the junior level.

“The biggest thing about high school hockey (in Minnesota) is it’s structured very competitively. If you compare it to Triple-A hockey, from what I’ve seen, there is a lot more loopholes to get on a team,” said Paine. “There are no teams in high school hockey where you can just walk on. You have to practice and you have to compete. I think that is what Minnesota has going for it the most, the everyday competitiveness.”

Much of Duluth Marshall’s success is tied to the culture the school. As a private, college prep school, kids come in for academics first and want to graduate. The small enrollment is also beneficial for kids to be more involved and work harder.

“Success breeds more success,” Flaherty said about Marshall. “These kids come into our program and there is a bar, a standard that is set and these kids come in and they have to work to achieve. There is a lot of pressure on the kids to succeed and because of that, they have no choice but to work hard.”

Paine’s goal is to play college hockey and will probably play juniors somewhere next year, but is more concentrated on this season and graduation first. If and when he dons a college uniform, he will follow a line of Duluth Marshall alumni to go on and play at the next level. According to Flaherty, five recent Hilltoppers will be playing in Division I next year: two at Air Force, two at UMD and one at Boston University. He also added that there is a group playing college hockey in Division III and one Hilltopper that is currently playing club hockey at world-renowned MIT.

For every success story of a high school player leaving early for juniors, there are plenty of cases where the decision doesn’t pan out. Duluth Marshall can be looked be at as a model of success for graduating players while competing at a high level year in and year out. Not every school has the resources Marshall has as a private school, but great competition, good coaching, friendship and education can be promoted by any Minnesota high school.

Flaherty said there is a committee in place whose main focus is to inform parents and the general public of the benefits in high school hockey. He also has a good relationship with the NAHL.

“They flat out told me that they respected our philosophy of graduating players and have a relationship to get players after high school,” said Flaherty.

Similar to Texas with football and Indiana with basketball, when people think of Minnesota high school sports, they think of hockey. Keeping players at home to finish their high school careers will be important for the state’s hockey tradition to continue to thrive.

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