When the Minnesota Boys High School state hockey tournament ends on Saturday, John King retreats to the basement of White Bear Lake, Minnesota.
The resulting video montage – his “All Hockey Hair Team” – was released on YouTube this weekend and will win the annual location as a cultural touchstone since Minnesota. Without the whims of irony, it pays homage to “lettuce”, “ramen”, and “flow” that players flaunt during the introduction, helping the tournament become a phenomenon on social media and beyond.
King, 50, a self-proclaimed “hockey hair archaeologist” and former advertising executive, is one of the founders of Pulltab Sports, a sports and entertainment site with a “flyover of the mind.”
“We're trying to take things in the Midwest, which is often overlooked, and make a big deal,” King said. “Hockey hair would be a great example of that.”
His videos, which he has built every year since 2011, have become so popular that he is Minnesota-based Duke Cannon, which currently produces men's grooming products. This video also serves as a fundraising vehicle for the Hendrickson Foundation. This is trying to make hockey more accessible to people with disabilities.
This week, I caught up with King during a tournament game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, looking for potential talent to include in this year's video.
This interview was compiled and condensed for clarity.
Have you seen good hair at this year's tournament?
Ah, yeah, I always have good hair. It was Bob Dylan's year, with Hibbing (the team from Dylan's hometown) in the tournament. These guys look like glam rock bands from the 80s. It's incredible.
How do you explain good hockey hair?
It's long. It's enough to come out from behind the helmet. There are probably a few that come out from the side of the helmet. And it's long enough that you have to push it back a lot when you put on your helmet. It has a very classic look. It's how everyone looked in the film “The Miracle.”
How did you get your annual hockey hair montage off to your start?
In 2005, I was a writer for a TV show called “The Show to Land” in Minnesota. It was in the middle of the night so you may be drunk or not moving when you see it. And by “writer” I meant I paid nothing. I just sent an idea. And he pitched the idea to do top 10 hair in the tournament. They put it on the TV. No one really saw it. And then I did it again in 2011 when YouTube was going on a bit. My kids were both playing, so I sent the video to some group texts. The next morning, I got 10,000 views and it's been rolling ever since.
What were your expectations when you posted your first video on YouTube?
I've always known that the buildings they play the game have 18,000 people. So I thought 100,000 people were concerned about the tournament. I sent lots of letters to the sponsors and “If this gets 10,000 views, I'll pay $2,500 and put your logo in it.” No one wrote me back. At the time, the woman who still cut my hair was working in a place called hair. So I put her number there and she has lots of weird calls.
Why do you think the video has become so popular?
Minnesota hockey is really different. These kids play with friends from mites to high school. Minnesota has 100 hockey towns. So it's not really about video. It shines the spotlight on what people already love. It's unique. It's like Texas soccer or Indiana basketball. There's no one in hockey like Minnesota.
What is the process of evaluating potential members of a team?
I think I'm a purist. I actually like hockey hair. There's a lot of really crazy things right now, and I'll put it there. But I'm actually looking for the best hockey hair. Bleach is a trend, and it becomes much more difficult. Because when it's all bleached and all look the same, you really don't know who has good hair.
Have you noticed any new trends at this year's tournament?
Well, we slapped ourselves. I've never seen it.
Did he slap himself?
He smacked the face twice while introducing the players.
Are there any trends related to hair?
You got the weird thing about guys shaving the top of their heads and leaving the sides for a long time. But I think this year I'll be back with real old-fashioned hockey hair.
How do you put together the videos?
I make it in the basement of Imoby. I waited until the end of the tournament to put it all together, and I had some pretty dangerous nights and now I'm really trying to chip. I clip what I might use, and I'll probably end up with about 20 minutes of footage where I try to cut down to 7 or 8 minutes. Today, along with Tiktok, people don't like to see things that go for that long. But I like Longform. I'm older, right? I like being able to tell stories. And I don't put it until the tournament is over, as I like to have a context of what actually happened and add a little highlight reel at the end. It's a time capsule: This is the 2025 high school hockey tournament.
Do you feel a sense of personal responsibility for helping your hockey hair stay alive?
No, not at all. Hockey players are going to do what hockey players do. They are cowboys. If anything, I would like to showcase this incredible tournament and raise some money for the Hendrickson Foundation. Because hockey players are stars.
Do you have hockey hair?
Yes, my hair is good. I feel bad saying that, especially for the 50-year-old. I'm hanging there.
