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Jun. 3—BEMIDJI — Chris Hennum put his money where his mouth is.
As the Bemidji High School girls hockey team headed into the 2026 Section 8AA playoffs as the No. 1 seed, Hennum, a girls coach in the Bemidji Youth Hockey Association, had already booked his hotel in St. Paul.
The Lumberjacks hadn't played a section game yet, but he was confident they'd return to state for the first time in 19 years.
"I don't believe in jinxes," Hennum said. "We had faith."
It was a gamble he didn't hesitate to make.
"I knew that we were going down to watch if they made it," Hennum continued. "We convinced a couple of families to do the same and make it a weekend getaway. The excitement was there. I'm pretty deep in the girls hockey scene, so my friend group and the people around me all shared the same excitement. That's all we talked about when it was happening."
Roughly four months after he booked the room, and a little over three months after
BHS played Edina in the Class AA quarterfinals
at Grand Casino Arena, Hennum still has that faith and excitement for the 2026-27 season.
It just comes with a little more weight than it did before.
On May 29, BHS activities director Kristen McRae announced Hennum as the program's seventh head coach. He replaces Mike Johnson, who
retired from the position in March after eight seasons.
"I just hope I can continue what Mike developed over his eight years at the helm," Hennum said. "When he took over, this team certainly struggled. So for it to be where it is now, we owe him a thank you for what he did. He left the program in a great spot. It's a great opportunity. I wish the season started tomorrow."
Hennum, a Baudette native, played for Lake of the Woods in high school before playing in the United States Hockey League.
"I've always considered myself a leader," Hennum said. "I was always interested in coaching. One of the biggest influences in my life was a coach and a teacher of mine from high school. I think of the things he did often, but I didn't realize the passion I had for coaching until I started coaching my kids."
After his playing career concluded, he attended the University of Minnesota. He moved to Fargo and met his wife, then moved to Bemidji in 2011 and works for Headwaters Insurance Agency.
For the better part of the last decade, Hennum has coached youth girls hockey in Bemidji with two daughters in the sport.
"When the opportunity to step in came up, it felt a little surreal," Hennum said of the BHS position. "I was lucky enough to have encouragement and backers to push me to pursue it. I have such a passion for coaching the game. Having two daughters, I really enjoy coaching the girls side of the game."
When Johnson was at the helm, he pushed to strengthen youth girls hockey in Bemidji. While the Lumberjacks struggled with participation throughout Johnson's tenure, the 180-degree turnaround at the high school level has boosted youth participation.
"Success breeds more success," Hennum said. "These kids are role models to the younger girls for who they want to be when they get to high school. You'll have that no matter how your team does, but when you have a team that has the success that this group has had, it amplifies. Not only are they looking up to these high school girls, but they're going to every game they possibly can because it's so exciting to see a winning team win games.
"This group will reverberate for years to come, well beyond when they graduate. You can't emphasize the effect this group has had and will have on Bemidji hockey enough."
Within the last 10 years, the Bemidji Youth Hockey Association has put more of an emphasis on girls-specific programs at younger ages. Hennum, who has two girls making their way through the program, has seen the benefits of that initiative firsthand.
"When they gave the girls their opportunity at the youngest ages, the numbers have just skyrocketed," he added. "It's a credit to a lot of individuals who put that in place to help the development of girls hockey in Bemidji. Our family benefited from that. All of it is showing right now."
Hennum believes the excitement and expectations heading into a season have never been higher as Bemidji, which finished 21-7-1 last season, looks to defend its Section 8AA championship in 2026-27.
While the Lumberjacks lost some key seniors like forward Megan Berg and defenseman Taylor Bjerke, they return with standouts like Minnesota Duluth commit and Team USA 18U center Bailey Rupp, Naomi Johnson, Millie Knott, Lily Lauer, Mali McLean, Bergen Bakke and more.
However, the road back to the state tournament won't be any less challenging with Alexandria and Moorhead reloading.
"I think experience has taught them to believe that every time they walk into the building, they're the better team," Hennum said. "It's our game to win, and we're going to project that confidence and use it to our advantage. Hopefully, things go our way, and we're back in St. Paul in February."
Continue reading...
As the Bemidji High School girls hockey team headed into the 2026 Section 8AA playoffs as the No. 1 seed, Hennum, a girls coach in the Bemidji Youth Hockey Association, had already booked his hotel in St. Paul.
The Lumberjacks hadn't played a section game yet, but he was confident they'd return to state for the first time in 19 years.
"I don't believe in jinxes," Hennum said. "We had faith."
It was a gamble he didn't hesitate to make.
"I knew that we were going down to watch if they made it," Hennum continued. "We convinced a couple of families to do the same and make it a weekend getaway. The excitement was there. I'm pretty deep in the girls hockey scene, so my friend group and the people around me all shared the same excitement. That's all we talked about when it was happening."
Roughly four months after he booked the room, and a little over three months after
BHS played Edina in the Class AA quarterfinals
at Grand Casino Arena, Hennum still has that faith and excitement for the 2026-27 season.
It just comes with a little more weight than it did before.
On May 29, BHS activities director Kristen McRae announced Hennum as the program's seventh head coach. He replaces Mike Johnson, who
retired from the position in March after eight seasons.
"I just hope I can continue what Mike developed over his eight years at the helm," Hennum said. "When he took over, this team certainly struggled. So for it to be where it is now, we owe him a thank you for what he did. He left the program in a great spot. It's a great opportunity. I wish the season started tomorrow."
Hennum, a Baudette native, played for Lake of the Woods in high school before playing in the United States Hockey League.
"I've always considered myself a leader," Hennum said. "I was always interested in coaching. One of the biggest influences in my life was a coach and a teacher of mine from high school. I think of the things he did often, but I didn't realize the passion I had for coaching until I started coaching my kids."
After his playing career concluded, he attended the University of Minnesota. He moved to Fargo and met his wife, then moved to Bemidji in 2011 and works for Headwaters Insurance Agency.
For the better part of the last decade, Hennum has coached youth girls hockey in Bemidji with two daughters in the sport.
"When the opportunity to step in came up, it felt a little surreal," Hennum said of the BHS position. "I was lucky enough to have encouragement and backers to push me to pursue it. I have such a passion for coaching the game. Having two daughters, I really enjoy coaching the girls side of the game."
When Johnson was at the helm, he pushed to strengthen youth girls hockey in Bemidji. While the Lumberjacks struggled with participation throughout Johnson's tenure, the 180-degree turnaround at the high school level has boosted youth participation.
"Success breeds more success," Hennum said. "These kids are role models to the younger girls for who they want to be when they get to high school. You'll have that no matter how your team does, but when you have a team that has the success that this group has had, it amplifies. Not only are they looking up to these high school girls, but they're going to every game they possibly can because it's so exciting to see a winning team win games.
"This group will reverberate for years to come, well beyond when they graduate. You can't emphasize the effect this group has had and will have on Bemidji hockey enough."
Within the last 10 years, the Bemidji Youth Hockey Association has put more of an emphasis on girls-specific programs at younger ages. Hennum, who has two girls making their way through the program, has seen the benefits of that initiative firsthand.
"When they gave the girls their opportunity at the youngest ages, the numbers have just skyrocketed," he added. "It's a credit to a lot of individuals who put that in place to help the development of girls hockey in Bemidji. Our family benefited from that. All of it is showing right now."
Hennum believes the excitement and expectations heading into a season have never been higher as Bemidji, which finished 21-7-1 last season, looks to defend its Section 8AA championship in 2026-27.
While the Lumberjacks lost some key seniors like forward Megan Berg and defenseman Taylor Bjerke, they return with standouts like Minnesota Duluth commit and Team USA 18U center Bailey Rupp, Naomi Johnson, Millie Knott, Lily Lauer, Mali McLean, Bergen Bakke and more.
However, the road back to the state tournament won't be any less challenging with Alexandria and Moorhead reloading.
"I think experience has taught them to believe that every time they walk into the building, they're the better team," Hennum said. "It's our game to win, and we're going to project that confidence and use it to our advantage. Hopefully, things go our way, and we're back in St. Paul in February."
Continue reading...
