About us
Who are the Upstate Badgers?
The Upstate Badgers were founded in August 2024 after the termination of the Syracuse Firebirds name as part of the Onondaga Youth Hockey Association. With a single 14U team in our Inaugural Season, the Badgers started to see heavy interest grow during the season. An emphasis on player development and the focus on putting the team first, the 2024-25 14U Badgers helped to draw in the eyes of many other players and created a boom in players and families looking for a new youth hockey option in Central New York.
Upstate Badgers Coaches provide structure and commitment to your player that help to propel them and grow their skills on and off the ice. Our coaches approach hockey with heavy intent on detailed explaining of the "why" things happen on the ice. Creating forward thinking, preplanning, practicing with intended expansion on player and game opportunities, the Badgers work toward fostering smart hockey players, which translates to the players implementing those same structure-based habits into their everyday lives.
