From Peewees to the Pros and from Roseau to Red Wing, the 2015-16 season was an exciting one in the State of Hockey. While the National Hockey League playoffs continue, following is a look back at some of the best stories from throughout Minnesota this year.

Minnesota Eclipses 17,000 8U Milestone; Edina Scores State Titles

►USA Hockey announced that for the sixth straight season, it eclipsed 100,000 players in its 8-and-under age category. Not surprisingly, no state in the country could match Minnesota, which for the first time, can boast more than 17,000 players in that age group. Read More

►The 2016 Minnesota Youth Hockey State Tournaments delivered outstanding performances by teams and players across the State of Hockey. Edina took home four trophies - at the Junior Gold A, Bantam B, Peewee B and 15UA girls’ levels. Read More

►Josh Karels, a second-year Bantam A forward for Cottage Grove, was named the 2016 recipient of the Patrick Schoonover Award. Read More

Hermantown Breaks Through; Stunners in Sections

►Wayzata’s Alex Schilling made 30 saves to fend off top-seeded conference foe Eden Prairie to win the Trojans’ first-ever boys’ Class AA state championship in front of more than 19,000 fans in St. Paul. Junior defenseman Logan Lindstrand scored his second game-winning goal of the tournament, launching a wrist shot through traffic that found its way to the back of the net. Read More

►In Class A, Hermantown’s streak of six consecutive runner-up finishes came to end, as it blanked high-powered Breck 5-0 in the championship game. Read More

►On the girls’ side, Eden Prairie senior Lauren Oberle gave the Eagles a 3-2 overtime win over Maple Grove in the Class AA final, ending the Crimson’s impressive run in its first State Tournament appearance. Read More

►Blake senior forward Carly Bullock broke Krissy Wendell’s all-time Minnesota State High School League goals record for tournament play, leading the Bears (26-2-2) to their third Class A state title in four years. Read More

►The always-thrilling boys' State Tournament followed a stunning section playoff season, during which teams ranked No. 1, No. 3, No. 4, No. 5, No. 11, No. 12 and No. 15 in Class AA all went down, and the third-ranked team in Class A also fell. The biggest upset may have been in Section 6AA, where Cretin-Derham Hall knocked off the state's top overall team Benilde-St. Margaret's 4-3 in overtime. The Red Knights had finished the regular season with a 24-0-1 record.

►Wayzata’s boys’ Junior Gold A team later claimed a national championship, out-dueling Edina in an all-Minnesota final. Read More

►Blaine's Riley Tufte and Minnetonka’s Presley Norby won the 2016 Mr. and Ms. Hockey Awards, respectively. Read More

►In one of the most incredible individual performances of the season, Apple Valley junior goaltender Taylor DeForrest made 111 saves in a nine-period (including six overtimes) loss to East Ridge. Read More

Kessel Return Sparks Another Gophers’ Natty; St. Cloud State Men Have Success

►Sarah Potomak scored just 13 seconds into the game and Amanda Kessel and Kelly Pannek added third-period goals as the University of Minnesota women's hockey team took home its seventh national title with a 3-1 win over Boston College. Read More

►Sparked by Kessel’s surprising late-season return, Minnesota (35-4-1) is back-to-back national champions for the third time in program history and now owns an NCAA-best seven national titles. The Gophers have won four of the last five national championships.

►The St. Cloud State men’s squad had an excellent 2015-16 season, finishing 31-9-1 overall and as NCHC Frozen Faceoff champions. The Huskies, ranked in the top 10 for much of the season, were the NCAA Tournament’s No. 2 overall seed, but were upset in the first round by Ferris State. SCSU was joined by Minnesota Duluth as the only Minnesota-based Division I teams in the NCAA Tourney. Read More

►SCSU senior defenseman Ethan Prow was named one of 10 candidates for the 2016 Hobey Baker Award.

►The Huskies also won their first North Star College Cup, defeating Bemidji State 5-2 in the final, after beating Minnesota State 5-4. Read More

►In Division III, Augsburg took the MIAC men’s playoff crown with a thrilling 5-4 win over St. John’s in the championship game. The St. Thomas women squeaked by Bethel 2-1 to claim the MIAC Playoff title. Read More

Nostalgia Reigns at Outdoor Stadium Series; Whitecaps Make History; Housley Earns Hall Induction

►Despite an up-and-down campaign that included a record-setting first half, a mid-year coaching change and injuries to key players, the Minnesota Wild went 15-11-1 down the stretch to qualify for the NHL playoffs for the fourth consecutive season. The Wild nearly completed one of the most incredible comebacks in NHL playoff history, scoring four goals in the third period of Game Six versus Dallas, but ultimately were defeated 5-4 and eliminated from the postseason. Captain Mikko Koivu led the team in scoring in 2015-16, posting 56 points (17 goals, 39 assists) in 82 regular season games. Read More

►The Wild's 6-1 victory over rival Chicago on February 21, outdoors in front of more than 50,000 fans at TCF Bank Stadium, was the perfect cap to an entertaining and nostalgic Stadium Series weekend in the State of Hockey. Read More

►The previous afternoon, more than 30,000 people watched former North Stars and Wild legends take the ice together in the Alumni Game against legends from Chicago. Dennis Maruk scored the game's first goal, as the North Stars/Wild won 6-4.

►Dec. 11-13 was a celebration of girls’ and women’s hockey in Minnesota. The weekend was highlighted by the Minnesota Whitecaps facing the Boston Pride of the National Women’s Hockey League in the first-ever professional women’s hockey games played in the state. Read More

►Several Minnesota-born skaters made their National Hockey League debuts during the 2015-16 season: Brady Skjei from Lakeville (New York Rangers), Kyle Rau of Eden Prairie (Florida) and Duluth’s Derek Forbort (Los Angeles).

►South St. Paul's Phil Housley was inducted into the National Hockey League Hall of Fame. Read More

Coming Together for Matt Olson; Hockey Day Minnesota a Statewide Celebration

►Demonstrating the power of the hockey community, the Wild, Chicago Blackhawks and broadcast partners helped to raise more than $177,000 for the family of Matt Olson, who suffered a severe injury to his spinal cord in a junior hockey game in February. Olson, a graduate of Totino-Grace High School, was injured while playing for the Chicago Cougars. 

►Hockey Day Minnesota, the State of Hockey’s statewide celebration of the sport, was a triumphant success, as fans on-site in host city Duluth and throughout Minnesota were treated to an incredible day of hockey fun. Read More

►Action in picturesque Duluth included two outstanding high school matchups (Duluth Denfeld beat Eveleth-Gilbert 5-2; Lakeville North beat Duluth East 3-2), Peewee and Mite games, Wild Sled Hockey and a Duluth police vs. firefighter tilt. Read More

►Stillwater was chosen to host the 2017 Hockey Day Minnesota activities. Read More