In 2008, Rick Randazzo and his wife, Shannon, launched the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. FCA Hockey ran numerous summer camps and put together teams that would compete in summer tournaments across the country.
One summer out in Boston at the Chowder Cup, Randazzo had a player, the team’s goalie, approach him. The summer was a great experience, and the players wanted the ability to play with the team all year.
A few years later, the Northstar Knights and the Northstar Christian Academy were born. That player was on the original team, and four of the players from that initial team are now Division I commits. Today, the program has teams playing at the 18U and 16U levels and it’s become one of the most up-and-coming and successful academies in North America, with pillars that Randazzo feels differentiates them.
“My wife and I launched FCA hockey in 2008,” he said. “Fellowship of Christian Athletes has been around since 2008. We’ve had all kinds of coaches from the NHL, to the USHL, to college and whatnot that we’ve worked with. Now, guys like that are seeking us out and want to become part of what we are building here at North Star. They want to come here for the environment that we built.”
Soon, the program plans on adding a full-time goalie coach. Currently, a USHL goalie coach visits the facilities multiple times per week.
Oh, and those facilities? They’re start-of-the-art.
Northstar has a 40-acre complex in Alexandria, Minnesota that is all owned and controlled by the academy. The school, which Randazzo’s wife, Shannon, oversees, is a $3.5 million facility. The hockey complex, which was built for $9 million, is almost paid for outright.
There is a custom shooting bay, the team owns its own coach bus and they’re in the process of building a dormitory for players. Randazzo said permits are approved and they’re hoping to break ground on it in April.
That ownership and control of the ice, in particular, allows them the ability to bring opportunities to their players.
“Having our own facilities and owning them, it’s huge,” Randazzo said. “We aren’t relying on anyone else but ourselves. It allows us to be flexible with our schedule. A few weeks ago, right before Christmas, we had the chance to bring in Zenon Konopka, who works with Adam Oates, and they do high-end skill development. They work with guys like Connor McDavid. But because we own the ice, we own the facility and we control everything, we have the ability to change our schedule around and bring in guys like that. We can work around their schedule.”
That schedule includes two skates per day for the players: a 90-minute team practice and a 60-minute skills session.
“We don’t do skills once per week,” Randazzo said. “Every day.”
The team also has its own training room with a full-time staff, as well as its own weight room with its own strength coach.
“I don’t want to say it’s unlimited resources,” Randazzo said, “but it’s been incredible to see how the Lord has blessed us and taken care of our needs. It’s allowed us to bring in some great people. About a month ago, (Minnesota State) head coach Mike Hastings was here. We’ve had (North Dakota head coach) Brad Berry here, his son goes here, so his whole staff came to visit us. We’ve had St. Cloud guys come in here and Bemidji State as well. They all feel like this is a place that’s going to continue to grow and produce high-end players.
“That’s why we continue to emphasize development every day. That includes hockey development and spiritual development.”
Spiritual development is the third, and from Randazzo’s standpoint, the most important pillar. He said he believes it’s what differentiates them the most from other academies.
Players spend 2.5 hours per day on the ice and five hours per day in the classroom. They also spend 60-90 minutes on spiritual development.
“It’s part of our every day here,” he said. “It intertwines everything we do and brings it all together. We’ve had players come through and like our hockey but it’s not the right fit from a spiritual standpoint, and that’s OK. We’re not always looking for the best hockey players. We’re looking for someone who is willing and understands, whether he’s a Methodist, Catholic, Baptist, it doesn’t matter. We want our players to be open to growing their relationship with God and we take that as seriously here as we do our hockey. We feel if you can get the spiritual part straight, the hockey will take care of itself.
“We have three pillars that I feel separate us the most. We have great coaches, we have great facilities, but then we have that third pillar in spiritual development. That’s the big piece.”
Randazzo said that players also take part in discipleship time two or three times per week, and there is a chapel in the rink.
“When I am touring players, I tell them that out there on the ice we work on our lungs,” Randazzo said. “In the weight room we work on our strength. When our players are in the classroom we’re working on our brains, and then when we’re in the chapel we’re working on our hearts. That’s what brings us success.
“We invest so heavily in our players,” he said. “Hockey is important here. We want Division I commits, but at the end of the day, that’s not how we are judging our success. How are these kids going to be in 10 years as husbands and fathers? That’s important.”
