MN Special Hockey History
Our History
Susie and her kids.
Minnesota Special Hockey was founded by Susie Miller in the Spring of 2006.
Six one-hour skate arounds were scheduled at Richfield Ice Arena. When almost 50 participants from all over the Metro area attended, Susie realized that this had the potential to be a permanent ice hockey program with state-wide participation.
That summer Susie contacted Jane Cashin, Rick Carlson and Chris Winkel. Her enthusiasm got them on the bandwagon but the new group quickly realized that more people needed to be involved.
Leading the way were founding Board members Toni Gillen, Cheryl Caffrey, Jane Cashin, Cindy Coughlin, George Holden, Joe Kelly, Susie Miller, Rick Carlson and Chris Winkel and quickly Minnesota Special Hockey was formed as a corporation and received approval to be a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
The inaugural season launched with the formation of two teams, the Stingers and Polars. A Kick-Off Event was hosted at Mariucci Arena on the University of Minnesota campus, which helped to attract additional skaters. The Star Tribune ran a story about the Kick-Off Event which was key in helping to secure MSH’s first donation to the program.
Shortly after the Star Tribune story ran, the president of Premier Bank contacted Susie Miller to say, "I was told to find you and give you money." He then sent a donation check for $1,500 to help get MSH off the ground.
Minnesota Made Ice Center then became the first ice facility to step-up to support the program and donate ice time for the first season. Quality jerseys were also needed, but weren’t in the budget...until the Minnesota Wild called to say they had a group of season ticket holders that wanted to donate $1,200 to a local charity. This donation helped provide the first jerseys. This initial donation was the beginning of a great partnership with Section 108 season ticket holders and Minnesota Special Hockey.
Over time MSH benefitted from the gracious efforts of many which helped the program to rapidly grow.
A 'New Era' started in the summer of 2017 when an affiliation with the Minnesota Wild became official. This fantastic new relationship came with a new logo, new jerseys, the responsibility of representing the Wild, and a few organizational changes to better support the players and their varying skill levels.