This Day in Minnesota Hockey History: March 15

Let's crack the vault and see what happened on the ice on this day.

March 15, 2019 at 6:37AM
Warroad High School's Henry Boucha on the move in a 1969 state tournament game
Warroad High School's Henry Boucha on the move in a 1969 state tournament game (Brian Stensaas — STAR TRIBUNE/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

1969: Warroad's Henry Boucha returned home after a trip to Canada looking at junior teams, and that came after an extended hospital stay following an injury in the state-championship game vs. Edina.

Boucha collided into the boards about 5 minutes into the second period, puncturing his eardrum.

"I've got a hole in my eardrum about the size of a pin but otherwise I feel fine," he told Sid Hartman.

Boucha, meanwhile, said he's narrowed his college choice down to Denver, North Dakota or the Gophers but will also consider juniors. Oshawa and Toronto are on the list.

Concerned citizens of Warroad have raised about $1,500 for Boucha's family to offset the medical bill costs of his injury not covered by the High School League but the family says no more is needed. There is a fear of losing his amateur status for spring baseball.

"Swede Carlson and R.A. (Tut) Marvin passed the hat," Warroad coach Dick Roberts told the Minneapolis Tribune. "But we don't want any more."

1963: Minneapolis player-coach Ken Yackel had a goal and an assist and also roughed up Muskegon goalie Dennis Jordan, but the Millers lost 8-3 on the road to fall into third place in the IHL.

1975: Michigan Tech battered the Gophers 6-1 to win the NCAA championship in Detroit. It was a revenge game; Tech lost to the Gophers the previous year. Tom Younghans scored the Gophers' lone goal, nearly 10 minutes into the third period.

1981: Colorado College defeated the Gophers 9-7 at Williams Arena, but Minnesota won the two-game, total goals WCHA series 14-10 and advanced to the NCAA tournament. Gophers forward Aaron Broten called the weekend "shinny hockey … you score one, we'll score one." Coach Brad Buetow wasn't so positive. "We certainly didn't play playoff hockey. I wasn't proud of our effort."

1983: No Gophers were selected to the Division I West All-America team, causing Buetow to call the process a "travesty" and "a shame."

1991: Seven players scored goals in a 7-3 rout over Elmira to catapult Mankato State into the Division III national title game vs. Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Glen Prodahl of Orono made 38 saves for the Mavericks.

1997: Puck luck: David Hoogsteen's slapshot careened off the stick of Gophers defenseman Brett Abrahamson and right to a waiting Peter Armbrust, who buried the puck past Steve DeBus giving the Sioux a 4-3 overtime victory in the WCHA title game at the Civic Center.

2002: Jordan Leopold scored 55 seconds into the game, and the Gophers ended a four-game losing streak at the WCHA Final Five with a 4-1 victory over St. Cloud State.

2008: Marian Gaborik scored his 200th career goal in a 2-0 Wild victory over Los Angeles.

2009: Eden Prairie's Nick Leddy named Mr. Hockey.

2014: Kelly Terry's hat trick sparked a 5-1 victory over Boston University and sent the two-time defending champion Gophers back to the women's Frozen Four.

about the writer

about the writer

Brian Stensaas

Digital editor, producer, reporter

Brian Stensaas has been with the Minnesota Star Tribune since 2004. He is a digital editor and sports reporter, with experience covering high schools, the NHL, NBA and professional golf.

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