Less than five months after hearing his name called by the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round of the 2025 NHL Draft, senior quarterback
Mason West of
Edina (Minn.) will go for a high school football state championship that has eluded him throughout his career.
Drafted as a 6-foot-6 center in hockey, West was 17 at the time of the NHL Draft. He was eligible to be selected because he turned 18 before the cut-off date of Sept. 15.
West had just finished his junior year and immediately announced he wanted to come back to Edina to pursue a football state championship as a senior. Then he would turn his attention to the ice full time.
Now West is back at U.S. Bank Stadium where win or lose, he will play the final football game of his career against
Moorhead in the AAAAAA championship.
As a sophomore, West led Edina to U.S. Bank Stadium for the state title. Late in the fourth quarter and down 28-21, he led the Hornets on a scoring drive but they were unsuccessful on the 2-point conversion and lost 28-27.
Edina reached the quarterfinals in 2024.
West has thrown for 2,311 yards this season and 7,528 in his career with 91 touchdown passes. Kent State, Marshall, Miami (Ohio) and South Dakota have extended football offers.
In hockey, West committed to Michigan State. He helped lead Edina to a state title as a sophomore when he scored 15 goals and dished out 23 assists. The next season he tallied 27 goals on just 44 shots with 22 assists in 31 games as the Hornets reached the state semifinals.
A few months later Chicago selected West 29th overall. He went to Chicago's development camp following the draft.
After that it was back to Minnesota for football. He threw four touchdowns in Edina's first game of the season.
Friday's championship game is a rematch of an October game won by Moorhead 51-44. Edina trailed with under two minutes left before West threw his third touchdown strike of the game and converted the 2-point conversion to take a 44-43 lead. But Moorhead had another drive in the tank and scored a touchdown to win.
In the semifinal last week against
Minnetonka, the Hornets trailed 28-7 in the second quarter before roaring back to win 42-41. West threw four touchdowns and ran for another in the contest.
Once football is over, West will play for the Fargo Force of the USHL before joining the Michigan State hockey team for the 2026-27 school year. Projected to join him in East Lansing in 2026 are San Jose Sharks draft pick Max Heise and Pittsburgh Penguins selection Brady Peddle.
