Laura Horton and Lindsay Sorem

January 2025 – Last February, Edina High School Girls’ Hockey captured the program’s fifth Class AA state championship in eight years. For a community with a hockey tradition as storied as Edina’s, the team’s sterling track record might not be surprising. According to EHS grads Lindsay Sorem and Laura Horton, what is surprising is that the Hornets have never once sold out a regular season game at Braemar Arena.

That may change on Friday, Jan. 10. On that date, Minnetonka High School will play Edina for a rival game that is already shaping up to be one to remember, no matter who comes out ahead on the ice.

Horton, who has a daughter on the roster, traces this vision of a sold-out regular season game to last winter, just as the varsity teams from Edina and Minnetonka vied for their latest title at Xcel Energy Center. In conversation with Minnetonka parents, Horton reflected that these two accomplished programs had never filled Braemar West to capacity – this despite 30 seasons of play under the Minnesota State High School League.

The moment felt right. “During this time, Caitlin Clark was dominating college basketball and women’s sports was growing a fan base,” she explained. Further, the popular Minnesota Frost were well on their way to winning the PWHL’s inaugural Walter Cup.

Packing the rink with 2,000 spectators for a high school match may be an ambitious aim, but Horton says that it is part of a goal that is larger still.

“Throughout the night we will celebrate Edina and Minnetonka trailblazers of girls’ hockey,” a number of whom have gone on to collegiate success and coaching careers. Many of them will be in attendance.

They will be joined by other special guests, including current Minnesota Frost starters and John Harrington, former Minnesota State women’s head coach and a member of the 1980 Olympic team behind the historic “Miracle on Ice.” Organizers hope that these meet-and-greet and autograph opportunities will help to drum up interest in the game.

More important still, Horton views the upcoming game as a springboard to spotlight the importance of mental health. As means to that end, she approached former EHS classmate Lindsay Sorem.

“The captains’ parents of this year’s team reached out to me and asked if I would connect with Sophie’s Squad … because they know I have volunteered for the organization in the past,” Sorem explained.

Sophie’s Squad is a Minnesota nonprofit dedicated to holding brave conversations and providing resources to student athletes contending with mental health challenges (and stigma). They typically do this at games and other events in collaboration with local teams, Sorem said.

Sorem’s own involvement dates back to 2021 when a profile on KARE-TV prompted her to reach out to Sophie’s Squad about coordinating an awareness event for her daughter’s Edina Hockey Association team.

“As a parent of two student athletes myself, over the years I’ve come to really understand the importance of mental health,” Sorem reflected. “Athletes carry a lot. They work to balance training, the classroom, performing on the ice and finding time for themselves.”

Horton and Sorem view the Edina-Minnetonka game as the perfect forum both to spread the Sophie’s Squad message and to fundraise in support of its mission. “We will be raising money for Sophie’s Squad by selling cookies, special sweatshirts, their merchandise and pucks for a chuck-a-puck contest,” Sorem noted.

In addition to a strong hometown presence, the pair are optimistic that the Jan. 10 game will draw in hockey fans who do not have any affiliation with either Edina or Minnetonka. That’s partly courtesy of a corporate sponsor underwriting tickets.

“We didn’t want the barrier of a ticket price to exclude anyone from attending, so partnered with Tradition Mortgage,” Horton said. “Tradition is led by leaders who are passionate about the community … and see the value in team sports.” In fact, “over 85% of their employees participated in a sport growing up, and much of Tradition Mortgage’s team still serves in the capacity of a coach, including many here in Edina.”

Lindsay Sorem graduated from Edina High School in 1994, and Laura Horton in 1995, meaning that the pair have witnessed the entire arc of the Edina High School Girls’ Hockey program to date. “They have progressed so much over the last 30 years in speed, skill and competitiveness. It’s so exciting … to celebrate that progress,” while also advocating for mental health, Horton shared.