Best Offensive Performance 
Carter Crowley, Eden Prairie 
Will Thonvold, Eagan 

Jax Dorff's hat trick in Stillwater's championship win over Minnetonka and Cade Christensen's five points in Woodbury Peewee A's Little Pumpkin finale have been well documented and rewarded with Most Valuable Player awards for each. 

Outside of those title-game performances were a pair of outliers, games for The Pumpkin ages played out away from the bright lights of Graham Arena Complex's Rink 4. 

On opening day, Eden Prairie's Carter Crowley turned a frigid Rink 2 into his own personal playground, skating up, down, around, and through the Omaha Jr. Mavericks for five goals, believed to be a record for the 11-year-old tournament. Eagan's Will Thonvold recorded his own five-point game later in the weekend, scoring four goals and adding an assist in the Wildcats' 6-2 win over Rogers. Thonvold ended up leading the tournament with 10 goals on the weekend. 

Best Goaltending Performance 
Matt Scott, Eden Prairie
Henrick Erickson, Wayzata Peewee A

Play-in darling Eden Prairie won its first three games of the Big Pumpkin, thanks in no small part to the goaltending of Matt Scott. In the Eagles' quarterfinal win over a talented Woodbury squad, Scott made 29 saves and held strong through several shootout rounds to claim the win. 

Wazyata blanked Rochester in the Little Pumpkin semifinals, powered by more than 40 saves from Erickson. For his big-time performance in a big-time spot, Erickson earned a place on the Little Pumpkin's All-Tournament Team.

Best Uniforms
White Bear Lake 

It's become a time-honored tradition that White Bear Lake brings the heat when it comes to uniforms. Black-and-orange is already a winning combination, but the Bears may have a designer on retainer for how well the colors, textures, and stitching play together. This year's all-orange kits put the Creamsicle Tampa Bay Buccaneers uniforms to shame. 

Best Cinderella Story
Brainerd 

In 2022, Brainerd was handed four consecutive losses in Rochester, outscored 21-10 throughout the weekend. 

This year, the Warriors turned heads after gutting out a 5-3 win over Farmington and a 6-3 win over host and eventual Orange Bracket champion Rochester. The dream fell short in a loss to runner-up Minnetonka in the quarterfinals, but the Warriors bounced back with an overtime win over White Bear Lake and a decent showing against Woodbury in their final game of the tourney.

Best Heart-and-Soul 
Foster Gaston, Shakopee
Charlie Hoese, Minnetonka 

Gaston and Hoese never took the ice in Rochester, but their impact was felt beyond the Olmstead County Fairgrounds. 

Unfortunately, injuries keep the pair from lacing their skates for the Sabres and Skippers. Injuries happen in any sport. They're cruel, unfair, and painful, both physically and emotionally. It's understandable for players to be frustrated, to feel as though the universe cackled while handing them a pair of twos. 

But not Foster and Charlie. 

Foster filled water bottles and carried them back to his teammates in the hood of his sweatshirt. Charlie chatted away on the Minnetonka bench, keeping teammates engaged and showing up for his friends for every game. These are just two examples of a weekend filled with little moments for these two. 

Teams will always find a spot for players with this level of character and dedication.