Illinois State Hockey welcomes Will Grinton to the Redbird Family! The Gurnee native forward will be joining us for the 2025-26 season as he is finishing up his season with the Lake County Vipers CSDHL 18U team!
Will chose to go to Illinois State because, “I wanted to go to a school located in the Midwest that was close and affordable. I thought the campus at ISU was nice and I am excited to be a part of the hockey program and look to use my strengths to help the team.” He intends to major in Business Administration while at ISU. Grinton is looking most forward to making new friends, playing hockey and meeting new teammates.When asked about his favorite coach, Will stated, “Tim Kinsman because he taught me all aspects of the game and always let me play to my strengths and gave me chances to be creative and productive.” Grinton credits that his biggest supporters are his parents because, “they have given me everything I could ever ask for with hockey. They’ve spent tons of time and money to get me to games and always let me have fun.” When asked about his biggest goal, Grinton said “when I scored the game winner on my senior night in front of all my family and friends and a big crowd.” The best hockey memory that Will has had was winning the CCM World Invite in Chicago during is U16 year and earning the MVP of the tournament.Some other fun facts about Will Grinton:
If Will can be an animal, he would be a gorilla because they are really strong and just swing across trees all day. Grinton has two siblings: an older sister; Abbie and a twin sister; Charly. Will’s favorite food is pasta including chicken alfredo.
“Will has been on our radar for a few years now. He brings a high IQ to the game and will add offensive depth to the organization.” – D3 Head Coach Michael Hernbrott
If you’re interested in playing for ISU Hockey, we encourage you to fill out our Recruit Form under the team tab on our website!