USHL

The United States Hockey League (USHL), in partnership with ShortSide, announced Tuesday a three-year partnership with ShortSide becoming an official off-ice accessories partner of the USHL. 

“The United States Hockey League (USHL) is excited to partner with ShortSide and their passion for providing quality hockey products,” said USHL President and Commissioner Bill Robertson. “We are also proud that USHL alumni and current NHL player Nate Schmidt is involved in the organization as we know Nate and ShortSide will provide top quality tape and additional products to our great league and Member Clubs.”

ShortSide is owned and operated by hockey players, for hockey players. Out of the state of hockey, Minnesota, ShortSide's core products are made in the USA. They offer a variety of tape and apparel to teams of all levels. Since inception their mission has been to provide teams with access to superior hockey tape. As a part of that process, their products were tested in NHL games prior to hitting the market in 2020.

"The USHL was incredibly important to my success as a player and as a person," said ShortSide Vice President of Sales Nate Schmidt. "At ShortSide, we believe in the quality of our product so teaming up with the best league in the US is a perfect fit." 

Schmidt is a USHL alumnus and is currently a defenseman for the Winnipeg Jets. Before making the NHL, Schmidt got his start with the Fargo Force during the 2009-10 season, a season that saw the Force make it to the Clark Cup Final. Schmidt was named to the USHL All-Rookie Team that season and also represented the Force at the USHL All-Star Game. The St. Cloud, Minn. native then went on to play three seasons with University of Minnesota before making the jump to professional hockey. In nine seasons with the Jets, Vegas Golden Knights, Washington Capitals and Vancouver Canucks, Schmidt has appeared in nearly 600 games with more than 200 career points. 

The 2021-22 season will be the USHL’s 20th season as the nation’s only Tier I junior hockey league. The USHL had 50 players selected at the 2021 NHL Draft, marking the fourth-straight season with 50-or-more USHL players selected in the Draft. More than 800 league alumni are currently on NCAA Division I rosters, further establishing the USHL as the world’s foremost producer of junior hockey talent. 

Scoring goals is our passion. A crafty ShortSide tuck happens to be our favorite. There are many variables that come into play in order to score a goal high on the ShortSide, but it all starts with a perfectly executed tape job. After scoring goals in every league from mites to the NHL, we are confident that our product will be a staple in any room.