His days as a member of the Edina High School hockey team were numbered.
In one last year with the team during the 2022-23 campaign, Charlie Sandven scored eight times while adding 26 assists. To advance to the next level after his high school career came to an end, Charlie was able to achieve his goal as he went over to play with the Minnesota Wilderness of the North American Hockey League. Ultimately, it was a short stop for Charlie as he made the move to Manitoba and Dauphin to join the Kings.
Sandven, who is an avid golfer, is now 30 games into his first year with his new team and he has become one of the team's most reliable defenders. He's also enjoying every second of being a part of the Kings organization, even if it means being several hours away from his family and back-home friends.
"The guys are great, the coaches are great, and the entire organization is great," said Sandven. "It's first class, I'm very happy that I decided to come here.
Standing in at 6'3", Charlie has rapidly improved throughout his time in the MJHL and Doug Hedley has relied on the 19-year-old in any situation. Whether it's five-on-five, a power play, to the Kings killing off a penalty, Sandven has stepped in and done a wonderful job.
A couple of weeks back, Charlie also got the chance to spend some time with his family as his parents and grandparents made the trip to Dauphin to watch Charlie live in action twice at Credit Union Place.
"It was great to be with my parents and grandparents, it meant a lot that they made the trek up here," offered Sandven. "They had a chance to see how I'm living and what I do on a day-to-day basis. It was great to be with them."
Heading into this past Tuesday's home game against Swan Valley, Charlie was still in search of his first goal with Dauphin. With 30 seconds left in the game, the Edina native was able to beat the Stampeders netminder as Sandven scored his first goal as a King in his 30th game with the club.
Charlie kept the puck and it's a moment that he won't forget.
"It felt pretty good, it took some weight off my chest," said Sandven. "It was a great game overall. Goaltending was phenomenal and everyone played their part, it was a solid win for our group."
Dauphin will look to keep it rolling this weekend. Entering a weekend that will see the team play two games, Dauphin has won three straight games, scoring 16 goals in the process. The team will be very busy over the next three weeks ahead of the Turnbull Cup playoffs as they continue to chase down the Blizzard for second place in the West Division.
The Kings have been getting outstanding goaltending from Cole Sheffield and Austin Seibel, and great defensive play from Charlie among the remainder of the defensive core and offensively, the Kings have been very efficient as of late.
One of their recent wins came against the Steinbach Pistons, who are ranked as the third-best team in the country.
"We have just come together as a tight-knit group, everyone is playing for the guy next to them," offered Sandven. "No one in our room is selfish. We all have one common goal and that's winning as many games as we can and making some noise this year."
Dauphin heads to Portage to play the Terriers on Friday before returning to Dauphin to host the Nighthawks on Saturday evening. They then play the Blizzard on Tuesday before taking on Swan Valley on Wednesday afternoon at 12:30.
Get to know Charlie:
What are some of your hobbies? I'm a pretty big golfer, I play a lot throughout the summer months. I also enjoy hanging out with my friends and I enjoy the company of my family.
What is your best golf shot? I had like 100 yards in for eagle on a par 5 and I sunk it, so that was pretty great.
Who are your favourite sports teams? Being from Minnesota, I'm a big Minnesota Vikings fan. I'm also a big fan of the Wild and Twins.
Who has been a big inspiration in your life? Definitely my grandpa, he is a very hard working man. I respect him very much for what he has done for our family, he's an incredible man that I love dearly. He's always there for me.
Would you like to travel? I would love to go back to Scottsdale and play some golf, pretty amazing place.
You can hear Charlie's full chat with Darnell Duff during the Dauphin Kings Power Play Show after the 4:00 p.m. news, weather, business, and sports on Friday.
