'Tourney Time' recaps 75 years of the Minnesota Boys' State Hockey Tournament

When the 2020 Minnesota Boys' State Hockey Tournament concludes, many hockey fans might go into hockey withdrawal. If that happens to you, there might be a cure.

A new book is just out called, "Tourney Time," written by Star Tribune sportswriter David La Vaque and co-author Loren Nelson.

It's a comprehensive history of the first 75 years of the tournament, but it's way more than stats and highlights. It's full of fun and unique stories that capture why the tourney is such a big part of the fabric of Minnesota.

La Vaque said they conducted hundreds of interviews to capture what makes the tournament so unique.

KSTP Sports Boys' State Hockey Central

"Whether you played in the '40s or four years ago, the game details get a little fuzzy for guys," La Vaque said, "so the default was always, well, tell me about your teammates because they always remember their teammates and the antics and the personalities."

Those "antics and personalities" are captured alongside the stories of the dominant teams and a series of lists, like the best teams and players that didn't make it to the tournament.

"It was almost three years of research and interviews and fact-checking and gathering photos, but we loved every minute of it," Nelson said.

The book is published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press.