I was ten years old when the first Mighty Ducks movie came out in 1992, which made me exactly the target audience for the Disney hockey movie. I absolutely loved the first movie and was especially excited to see the many filming locations in the Twin Cities that I recognized.

Some of the filming locations for the first installment of the movie included Mickey’s Dining Car, City Center, Met Center, and even the Stearns County Courthouse, which was used for the scene at the beginning of the movie when Gordon Bombay is on trial.

A sequel was released in 1994, which was again filmed almost entirely in the state of Minnesota. Locations featured in the film included the Mall of America, Rice Park, and the Met Center.

A third, largely unnecessary installment of the film was released in 1996. D3: Mighty Ducks featured a southern Minnesota flavor, with scenes filmed at Shattuck-St. Mary’s in Faribault and Rochester International Airport, and cafeteria scenes filmed at Carleton College in Northfield.

According to a “Mythbusters” section on the Carleton College website, the lunch scenes were filmed in the Severance Great Hall…but that almost didn’t happen!

“When the Minnesota Film and TV Board approached us, we almost said no,” says Joe Hargis, assistant vice president of external relations on the Carleton website. “But the production schedule was changed so they could shoot during non-class time, and it worked out.” Carleton received about $10,000 for use of the Great Hall. “Plus, we were credited at the end of the film,” says Hargis. “Priceless.”

45 films shot in the state of Minnesota