Before Mason West focused solely on hockey, he had one more goal to reach.
The Chicago Blackhawks forward prospect wanted to finish his football career with Edina High School and win the Minnesota Class AAAAAA state title, which Edina did last Nov. 21.
“I think it was just special (winning the state title)," said West, who will turn 19 on Monday. "Obviously, I’m still a kid. I’m just trying to have fun so it was special to hang out with those guys and be able to chase something special.
West, a quarterback, threw a pair of touchdown passes in Edina's 42-35 win against Moorhead to capture the state crown.
“I’ll always have football in hand," he said,"but I’m all hockey now and I kind of love it because I can dedicate my time to hockey and focus on things I need to get better at.”
Indeed, it's back to hockey for West, who is part of the United States’ roster for the World Junior Summer Showcase in Windsor, Ontario, which ends Saturday. Players from the U.S., Canada, Finland and Sweden attended the 10-game showcase in preparation for the 2027 IIHF World Junior Championship, set for Dec. 26-Jan.
5, 2027, in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta.
“It’s such a great opportunity,” West said. “It’s something I’m thinking about now. ’ I’m super excited and hungry to make that team.”
West (6-foot-6, 215 pounds) will play at Michigan State this fall. The No. 29 pick by the Blackhawks in the 2025 NHL Draft joins a roster that includes five first-round picks from the 2026 NHL Draft.
“Anytime with big players it’s playing to an identity," Michigan State hockey coach Adam Nightingale said. "Every time you move up you’re playing against bigger, stronger guys and for him, it’s using his frame to both protect the puck, kick the puck to the net and then also when he doesn’t have it, using his size and reach and physicality to end plays.
“I think that’s pretty common for guys at his size is really embracing what it means to play the game like a power forward.”
West took his latest step in that quest with Fargo of the United States Hockey League, where he had 25 points (10 goals, 15 assists) in 38 games last season; because West came straight from football to Fargo, it took a little time for him to adjust, opposed to 2024-25, when he arrived immediately after playing high school hockey with Edina, where he had 49 points (27 goals, 22 assists) in 31 games.
“He was skating 1-on-0 on the ice and doing some skating stuff, but it’s just a totally different beast," Fargo coach Brett Skinner said. "He started three months late, never mind just missing training camp. But I give him a ton of credit.
It speaks to his talent level and what he’s capable of that he can come into that time of year and be able to do what he did the second half of the year.