Founded in the spring of 2006, Minnesota Special Hockey is home to more than 180 players and 10 teams, comprised of all ages, spanning across the state. The season opens the first week of November and runs until the first week of March, with tournaments and festivals in between hour-long games and practices.
"Anybody in Minnesota that wants to play hockey can play hockey," Minnesota Special Hockey president Jane Cashin said. "There is such a high level of hockey here in Minnesota, that if for some reason a kid can't play typical hockey, we want to be there for them so they can play the game that really is our game in Minnesota."
Cashin's son, 23-year-old Sam, was another one of the Minnesota Special Hockey players on the ice Monday. He began playing hockey at age 2, but persistent seizures made playing on an organized team difficult. With Minnesota Special Hockey he didn't have to give up the game he was growing to love, and has elevated his hockey skills year after year, making friends along the way.
"It's just about having fun with my friends out there and just playing as a team and playing games," Sam said.
Amid the friendly competition, there were bragging rights on the line for Sam on Monday. He was playing against his brother-in-law, Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Gardiner.
"I'm going to try and score a goal against him," Sam said of Gardiner, who is married to Sam's sister, Lucy.
He succeeded -- twice.
"Yeah, he's one up on me there. He's definitely pretty good," Gardiner said. "[Sam's] been talking about this game for the past few days, so I know how excited he was to get out there and play.
"For us it's a good reminder of how lucky we are to play hockey, and how special it is for these guys to just get out and play, too. With showcases like this, they get to hear their names announced when they score and you see their celebrations and how pumped they are. It gets us NHL guys really pumped, too.
"It's like their Stanley Cup, and we are all just happy to be a part of it."
