Ice in his veins: Pierre native Carter Sanderson climbs fast in USHL spotlight – Sioux Falls Live

PIERRE — With the nine-month slog of the United States Hockey League season finally behind him, Carter Sanderson has certainly earned this brief period of downtime.

Over the weekend, the South Dakota native returned to his hometown of Pierre, but the rarified air of calling himself a Clark Cup champion gives Sanderson a comfortable laurel upon which he can rest.

In his first year of junior hockey, the 17-year-old center helped guide the Muskegon Lumberjacks to the organization’s first Clark Cup championship last week when they defeated Waterloo 4-3 in overtime in a winner-take-all Game 5.

In total, Sanderson amassed 12 points (five goals, seven assists) and a plus-six rating on the ice during the 2024-25 campaign. He appeared in 61 contests, finishing with a .11 shooting percentage.

The Lumberjacks finished the season with a 49-18-9 record, and from the moment it all began back in late August, Sanderson felt something special brewing within the group.

“Obviously there were a couple trades during the year, so that kind of threw a wrench in some things,” Sanderson said. “But from the get-go, everybody got along really well, and it obviously worked out in the end.”

Contributed / Muskegon Lumberjacks

Muskegon entered the Clark Cup Playoffs as the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference and won two of three in the opening round to knock off fifth-seeded Cedar Rapids. Then, in the conference semis and finals, the Lumberjacks swept No. 1 seed Youngstown and second-seeded Dubuque, respectively, in back-to-back series, setting up a Clark Cup Finals showdown with Waterloo.

Each of the final three games between the Lumberjacks and Black Hawks were decided in overtime, including a 2-1 decision in double overtime in Game 3 that fell in favor of Muskegon. After Waterloo claimed a 3-2 triumph in OT in Game 4, the two teams found themselves in overtime yet again in Game 5, with Jack Christ capping off a hat trick to lift the Lumberjacks to victory and commence the celebration on road ice.

“It was a hard-fought battle all series long,” Sanderson said. “When we won in overtime there in Waterloo, that was amazing. Hoisting the Clark Cup for the first time was awesome. That’s a moment I’ll never forget.

“It felt great, and then seeing all my other teammates get to do it as well was great.”

In late August, Sanderson arrived in western Michigan after being selected by Muskegon more than three months prior in the fourth round of the USHL Phase II Draft.

Sanderson says there were about 32 participants at the Lumberjacks’ preseason training camp, but there was no guarantee he was going to make the opening-day roster.

“Going out there, I knew I had to really put my best foot forward and show the coaches why I deserved to be on that team,” Sanderson said. “There were kind of two groups. There were kids that were returning and kids who made the team, and then there were probably 10 to 15 of us who still knew we had to make the team.

“Really showing up to the rink every day to do your job was important. When I showed up, I knew I had to do that, but it was still great being at the rink every day even if I didn’t know I was going to make it.”

Just a few weeks before reporting to Muskegon, Sanderson made his college decision official on Aug. 2 when he

took to Instagram to announce his commitment

to the University of North Dakota.

Sanderson says the two schools he was mulling the most were UND and Augustana, but in the end, the opportunity to play for a blue blood program was irresistible.

“When I got that offer on August 1, I knew I had to take it,” said Sanderson, who is expected to join the Fighting Hawks for the 2026-27 season. “No disrespect to Augie or any of the other programs. It’s just top notch all the way around [at UND], so having the opportunity to be able to go there in the near future is a cool feeling.”

In 2021-22, Sanderson was a star forward at the high school level with the Oahe Capitals, who play their games on the western bank of the Missouri River at Oahe Expo Center in Fort Pierre. He tallied 42 points (27 goals, 15 assists) in 23 games that season, and in 2022-23, Sanderson left home and made his way to Alexandria, Minnesota, to play for Northstar Christian Academy, where he racked up 35 points in 55 contests at the 16U AAA level.

However, in the summer of 2023, a civil complaint was filed that alleged misconduct and mismanagement by coaches and board members at NCA. Around that time, Sanderson received a phone call from Sioux Falls Power co-founder Noëlle Needham, who encouraged the young skater to try out for Power’s 16U team.

“Noëlle has changed my hockey career,” Sanderson said. “She’s put a huge stepping stone in front of me. She’s given me so many opportunities. … I put a lot of trust in her, and in return, I got a lot of great feedback.

“She’s talked to schools, NHL teams — you name it — and not just on my behalf but for other people who play for Power.”

Submitted photo

For now, Sanderson is taking some time away from the ice to decompress, but in a couple weeks, he’ll begin his summer training ahead of his second year of juniors.

Sanderson plans to stay on his family’s farm about 30 minutes north of Sioux Falls near Flandreau, where he’ll commute to the Scheels IcePlex during the week to work out with Needham and other local skaters. Then, on the weekends, he’ll head back to Pierre to spend time with friends and family.

“I have a pretty set routine, and it works for me. So I like it,” Sanderson said. “Everybody loves working on shooting and whatever, but I really think I could work on skating. One-legged edge work is definitely a big piece.

“It’s hard to do it in the summer to train, but in game, I tend to have more time than I think with the puck. Really getting that in my head that I have more time to make more plays is big.”