10. Minnesota is home to five men’s and five women’s NCAA Division 1 hockey programs (U of Minnesota, U of Minnesota-Duluth, Minnesota State Mankato, Bemidji State & St. Cloud State Universities).

9. Minnesota provides more players to NCAA Division 1 men’s and women’s hockey team than any other state in the nation - 214 men and 105 women.

8. Minnesota has more indoor ice arenas than any other state in the nation - 195.

7. For the past five years Minnesota has had more players drafted into the NHL than any other state in the nation.

6. Minnesota based D1 schools have won 6 national championships in the past 5 years - 2 men’s and 4 women’s championships.

5. The National Hockey League Minnesota Wild has sold out every home game (pre-season, regular season and playoff) in its history. That’s 281 games!

4. In the 2006-07 season Minnesota registered more than 2,900 youth hockey referees, more than 8,000 coaches, and more girls hockey players than any state in the nation - 9,431.

3. Minnesota native Coach Herb Brooks, led the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team to a gold medal with 12 of 20 players on the roster from Minnesota.

2. Only in Minnesota are hockey “pants” called breezers and only in Minnesota are hockey “sweaters” called jerseys.

1. In the 2006-07 season Minnesota Hockey, the state’s youth hockey sanctioning body, registered more youth hockey players than any other sate in the nation - 43,841.

Information provided by www.minnesotahockey.org and Explore Minnesota Tourism.