Warroad hockey coach remembers idol Henry Boucha

INTERVIEWER: Now, earlier in the show, if you missed it, we talked about the life of Minnesota hockey legend Henry Boucha, who has died at the age of 72. We're going to take another few minutes right now to talk about his legacy with a current Warroad hockey leader. High school boys hockey coach Jay Hardwick played on the team he now coaches in the late 1990s, and Coach Hardwick is on the line right now. Welcome to the program.

JAY HARDWICK: Thanks for having me.

INTERVIEWER: If my memory serves me, Coach, your grandpa, Dick Roberts, was the coach during that famous 1969 state tournament where Henry Boucha played as a kid on the Warroad team. Did he tell you at all about what it was like coaching Henry Boucha?

JAY HARDWICK: Yeah, a little bit. He talked about just how special he was and how when he played, everyone kind of rose out of their seat. And he made the state tournament kind of what it was, where it was-- I know my grandpa talked about it a little bit, and he was just happy to be a part of it and had a lot of fond memories of coaching Henry.

INTERVIEWER: And now you've been the coach for Gaabi Boucha, Henry's grandson. That's pretty special.

JAY HARDWICK: Yeah, I said that last year. We did a little ceremony for Henry and honored him a little bit before one of our games, and it's amazing how small the hockey world is and how it had kind of come full circle that my grandpa coached Henry in high school and then now here I was coaching his grandson in high school. So it's a small world, and we were all happy to be part of it.

INTERVIEWER: I got to talk with Jess Myers, the reporter, hockey reporter-- I know you know Jess-- who said no one got to wear Henry's number 16 when he played on the high school team. Is that number still retired?

JAY HARDWICK: It is, yes. I think when I was growing up, it was kind of informally retired. It was just kind of a thing that nobody wore it out of reference to Henry and respect to him. And then I think eventually, they officially retired it. There's a banner in the arena. And so yeah, nobody's worn it I think since him just because it shows how special he was.

INTERVIEWER: Tell me about the impact that Henry Boucha has had on youth hockey in Warroad and, for that matter, across Minnesota.

JAY HARDWICK: Yeah. I mean, he's one of those people that's kind of a larger than life. Growing up in Warroad, I always just knew him as Henry. I would see him around the rink, and I would see him around town and at the golf course or wherever. And it's kind of special growing up in Warroad, you see these people, and they're just neighbors and friends. They're not maybe these celebrities where they are in the rest of the state.

But he was always very good to everyone in the hockey community. He supported us so much. He did so much for not only our hockey program, but our whole community. And a few years ago, the whole logo thing was going through, and Henry stepped in and kind of educated everyone on the history of Warroad. And once Henry Boucha got involved, people listen.

INTERVIEWER: We should tell folks who are not familiar, of course, Warroad has the nickname the Warriors because you have a large student body that's Native, and he was testifying against a bill that would require school districts to drop Native American names and mascots unless they get approval, right? By the way, where is Warroad in all that process, do you know?

JAY HARDWICK: They're in the application process right now. We're trying to get exempted from it. I know Henry's been working-- like I said, many years ago, he was in the forefront of protecting Warroad and our history. And right now, I think, all the way up to his passing yesterday, he was still going out and meeting with people and educating them about how Warroad's different than many other places, how we have a rich history.

Our first school was built on land that was given to us by the Native American Chief in Warroad and because he wanted us to build a school there, and he wanted the name to be the Warriors out of an honor, not a derogatory thing. He wanted the school to honor the Native Americans in Warroad and be called the Warriors. And Henry did such a great job of letting people know that and kind of just educating them on how special Warroad was and what that history meant to us.

INTERVIEWER: I am betting there's going to be something meaningful done in Henry's memory when Warroad's boys hockey team hosts Roseau, your arch rival Roseau, in that main event of Hockey Day Minnesota in January of 2024.

JAY HARDWICK: Yes, I'm sure there will be. Before all of this, we actually were going to have special jerseys, and Henry was involved with my assistant coach Michael Tveit, who unfortunately unexpectedly passed away this summer, kind of spearheaded the project.

And he was working directly with Henry. The jerseys are going to be kind of modeled after the jerseys that Henry wore when he was in high school, and so I know Michael and Henry were working directly together. And so I mean, it's like I told Henry's daughter yesterday [AUDIO OUT].

INTERVIEWER: Oh, no.

JAY HARDWICK: --that was unfortunately [AUDIO OUT] be there to see them, but it'll be a great way to honor both of them with these jerseys at Hockey Day.

INTERVIEWER: I'm sorry, Jay, we lost you right when you said, "I told his daughter yesterday," and then you kind of faded out. What did you say exactly?

JAY HARDWICK: Oh, I just told her that it was unfortunate that Michael, who had taken on this project with [AUDIO OUT]. Now, neither one of [AUDIO OUT] these jerseys in person, but I think it'll be a great way to honor both of them.

INTERVIEWER: I think you're right. I appreciate your time, Jay. Thank you so much. Jay Hardwick is head coach of the boys hockey team in Warroad, Minnesota. If you'd like to hear more about Henry Boucha's importance to the Native American community, All Things Considered will have a story about that this afternoon. You can also find all these stories at mprnews.org.