Steve “Moose” Younghans cuts an intimidating figure. He’s 6-foot-2 and about 290 pounds. The nickname is about as apt as they come.

Younghans grew up playing football on the East Side of St. Paul, but turned his attention to hockey as he began his coaching career, eventually serving 33 seasons as St. Paul Johnson’s head coach. 

Younghans is strict, a disciplinarian. But no-puck practices and endless conditioning, as punishment for misdeeds, really aren’t style.

“He was always determined for us to do our best, and he expected a lot from us,” former Governors player Hunter Fischbach said. “But he gave that right back. We gave it our all and he gave us his all.”

Younghans is one of four members of the Minnesota Hockey Coaches Association’s 2025 Hall of Fame class. He’ll be honored with all of the MHCA’s 2025 award winners during Tuesday’s Minnesota Wild game against the Winnipeg Jets at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul.

Over the years, changing demographics in the same East Side neighborhoods Younghans ruled as a strapping elementary schooler led to fewer and fewer kids interested in playing hockey. Younghans kept the program alive and competitive despite the dwindling numbers, but even his best efforts weren’t enough to save one of Minnesota’s most storied programs. The 2024-25 season was Johnson’s last, and the Governors will join forces with Highland Park to form one St. Paul team this season.

“Obviously it was our last resort,” Younghans said. “We hung in as long as we could. It is heartbreaking to have it come to an end.”

Johnson emerged as the first Twin Cities area superpower, winning state titles in 1947, 1953, 1955 and 1963. The Governors count “Miracle on Ice” coach Herb Brooks and former Minnesota governor Wendell Anderson among its legendary alumni. Former Johnson coach Lou Controneo was larger than life as a storyteller and jokester.

Johnson history adorns the walls of Phalen-Gustafson arena, where the Governors routinely packed the bleachers — even in recent years. 

“Our rink is a shrine to Johnson hockey,” Younghans said. “Teams come to our rink and they are flabbergasted at the history of our program. What it was, and what it is.”

The Governors have been taking road trips for games in northern Minnesota for years, and Younghans took meticulous mental notes whenever he entered some of the state’s most fabled arenas. 

“You had that northern feeling when you walked in (to Gustafson-Phalen),” St. Paul Academy coach Bill McClellan said. “All the pictures and the memorabilia. It seemed like every kid who played for Moose was up on the wall some way, somehow.”

St. Paul Johnson made 29 trips to the state tournament, the last coming 1995. But with Younghans at the helm the Governors always managed to grab statewide attention. Three times they played in front of packed bleachers and statewide TV audiences as part of Hockey Day Minnesota  (in 2007, 2009 and 2015).

Younghans even played a part in conceptualizing, if you want to call it that, the first Hockey Day Minnesota in 2007. 

We had just played a game against Lake of the Woods and we were sitting in the local VFW with their coaches and looking out on the (Baudette) bay,” Younghans said. “One of them said, ‘Would you ever come up and play a game there?’ ” 

Younghans was all in on the outdoor game idea, “Are you kidding me? That’s the stuff we dream about as coaches,” he said.

Producers of the Dream State hockey series approached Younghans about focusing its fourth season (2019-20) on the Governors. Moose wasn’t sold on the idea initially. Eventually he acquiesced, but under the condition that every player in the program, varsity and JV, get their moment to shine.

“I said, ‘Everybody in the program gets the microphone … every guy,” Younghans said. “And it turned out great.”

“You could tell that Moose really cared about every player who was on his team,” Fischbach said. “That’s a lot different than what you experience when you leave high school and play at other levels. It becomes a business.”

It was common practice for Johnson players to volunteer in the community and host a multitude of fundraisers to pay for road trips north, new equipment and any other team need not covered by the school.

“He would teach us how to work, how to earn all the extra stuff we got,” Fischbach said. “Nothing was given to us.”

Fischbach played on the team that was featured in the Dream State documentary, but he said his most memorable moment came during one of those northern trips. 

“(Younghans) always took us ice fishing as a team,” Fischbach said. “We went walleye fishing on Lake of the Woods. I caught a few small ones. That was so much fun.”