Hockey has not been the most popular sport around the Manitowoc area in the past, but that trend appears to be shifting.
High school hockey is back in Manitowoc County in the form of Manitowoc United.
They are a conglomeration of players from Manitowoc Lincoln, Roncalli, Two Rivers, Valders, Mishicot, and Reedsville High Schools.
We spoke with Mark Hinz, the head coach of the squad, and he said he couldn’t be more excited.
“This is such a great opportunity for our kids,” he said. “They have had to go elsewhere to play, and a lot of them dropped out and didn’t play anymore. We are back with a local team and a great group of kids. I’m very excited for our season.”
As of now, the program only consists of a JV squad, but Hinz said they do plan to have a varsity squad down the line.
Manitowoc United Coach Mark Hinz
“We are hoping to do that within two years. We are going to have to see how the competition and the numbers are,” Hinz explained. “Our goal is one more season of JV and after that, we will have a JV/Varsity Split team, with any luck.”
A big reason behind the JV-only program is simple, they are a very young team.
“Our JV program is almost all kids that were in our youth association last year,” Hinz revealed.
The reason they are so young is the upperclassmen are continuing to play for programs they have been a part of their entire high school career.
Manitowoc United also has a relatively short bench. Generally, a hockey team consists of around 20 players, with 4 lines of three forwards, two lines of 2 defensemen, and two goalies.
Manitowoc United currently has 16 players, one of which is a goalie.
But, with the rise in popularity of the youth program over the past few years, it is believed that the program will only become strong as the years go by.
Manitowoc United is back in action at the Manitowoc County Ice Center this evening.
They will be taking on Shawano with a puck drop at 7:00 p.m.
