The 1980 Miracle on Ice U.S. Olympic hockey team made history when a ragtag collection of the best college hockey players became a perfect team at the perfect time.
It’s the same magic captured by this season’s Team Wyoming 18U hockey team, which put 20 of the state’s best youth hockey players together and, with rare opportunities for practice, became perfect at the perfect time, winning the state’s first national championship April 7.
The 16- to 18-year-old members of Team Wyoming live hours apart, but came together to sweep five games in five days to claim the USA Hockey National Championship Youth Tier II 18U 1A title. Team Wyoming has won 14U and 16U titles in past years.
‘Remarkable Journey’
Coach Laramie Davies of Red Lodge, Montana, called the experience “a remarkable journey,” mainly because the players don’t practice much together.
“For the boys to do these things without practice, which every coach’s dream is to practice until you get better, it really was a unique story for these young men,” he said. “We weren’t together that much compared to every other team that played in the national tournament.”
Consider that the team was formed in June and practiced one weekend each in June in July, played a weekend of games in August and, except for September, basically played games one weekend a month until the national tournament.
But in September, Davies found a sponsor that helped send the team on a trip to Alaska for a weekend tournament.
“We actually flew up to Alaska and played in a tournament up there, (went) sightseeing and did a big team bonding trip to amplify the unification that we needed to become one,” Davies said.
It worked.
‘A Brotherhood’
Casper’s Dax Thomas, 17, a junior at Kelly Walsh High School who played left wing on the team, said the Alaska trip really made a difference.
“Ever since that trip, our team just clicked together and it became a brotherhood,” he said. “Every single person on the team was friends, our team camaraderie was the best of any team I’ve been on.”
Thomas credits his coach for instilling the right attitude that allowed the team to be successful.
“It definitely started from the top. Our coach was definitely someone our entire team respected and loved,” Thomas said. “And then our captain, Aaron Gallant from Cheyenne, definitely set a great example for all of us.”
Gallant said that as team captain, he tried to be a model for the other players as they faced adversity. He is an 18-year-old high school graduate planning to attend the University of Wyoming and play on a club team.
“If we were down late in the game or somebody was having a bad game, I wanted to be someone the team could look to or come talk to and figure out a way to have success,” he said. “I’ve played with Coach Davies for three years now, and so I kind of have his values and what he expects out of his players.
“So, I try to be a good leader not only by what I say, but what I do.”
Blue-Collar Attitude
Davies said the character of the team reflected the “blue-collar” attitude of Wyoming kids who arrived with support from their families and were ready to work.
In short, they did things the Cowboy Way.
To qualify for the tournament under USA Hockey rules, teams must play a minimum of 20 games, and each player and coach has to be part of at least half of those games. Because Team Wyoming could not come together to practice, Davies said he emphasized every player being available for every game.
While the players did not play together much, most do play against each other as members of their respective high school and club hockey teams.
During the national tournament, they swept through the bracket beating Pacific Edge 6-4 in their first game, the Idaho Jr. Steelheads 3-2 in the second game, then the Delaware Blue Hens 5-3. Game four was a 3-2 overtime win over the Utah Junior Mustangs, which set up the title game.
When playing for the title, Team Wyoming was perfect, shutting out the Idaho Jr. Steelheads 4-0.
Thomas said one of the highlights came in the semifinal game against Utah when they were down 2-1 in the last period.
“That game was definitely the greatest hockey game I have ever played in,” Thomas said, who was named to the all-tournament team. “I definitely had a few heart attacks throughout the game. It was a very close game right until the end. I scored a goal with 1 minute and 30 seconds left on passes from my brother (Braxton Thomas) and Patrick Lynch.”
Big Score
Teammate Hunter Lane of Casper put the puck in the net in overtime to give Wyoming the win.
Gallant agreed that Lane’s goal was special because the normally productive defenseman had not scored in the tournament until that point.
“And then in the semifinals in overtime against our rivals to put us in the championship, he came in with the biggest goal in the tournament for us,” he said.
Casper’s Eli Youmans, 17, a junior at Natrona County High School, said it wasn’t until the bus ride home that he really understood the magnitude of the win.
“It means a lot, because I don’t know how many times Team Wyoming will win national championships,” he said. “But to go 5-0 on the week and play in the national championship game and get a shutout.”
Davies said in addition to the being able to represent Wyoming and experience the national championship, players were seen and scouted by colleges and advanced junior teams.
Youmans said most of the players were approached by at least one scout during the week.
“I was one of the kids who got talked to and it definitely was a boost of confidence for me,” he said. “As well as my teammates.”
Hockey Lessons
Davies said the past hockey season has instilled lessons about the value of hard work, effort and discipline, and what those qualities can achieve.
“To see what these kids did, it sometimes leaves me speechless to know that I was a part of it,” he said. “They are all going to be very fine men in our society going forward. They’ve learned how to love each other, they’ve had tears of sadness and tears of joy, they’ve had adversity, but most of all they have grown as young men through the game of hockey.”
As winners the team received a banner and a golden championship plate. The team hopes to have banners made and installed in all the arenas around the state that represent the players’ home ice.
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at: Dale@CowboyStateDaily.com
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.
