NHL Reporter Jessi Pierce, And Her 3 Children, Die In House Fire

Published Mar 23, 2026 By Grant Bromley
On March 21, a house fire in Minnesota led to the tragic death of an NHL reporter, Jessi Pierce, as well as her three children.

On Saturday, March 21, a house fire in Minnesota led to the tragic death of an NHL reporter, Jessi Pierce, as well as her three children. (Photo credit: Jessi Pierce / X)

Jessi’s Husband, Mike Hinrichs, Was Traveling For Work When Tragedy Struck

Early in the morning of Saturday, March 21, in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, an NHL reporter named Jessi Pierce, 37, died in a sudden house fire with her three children and their family dog.

Her children were all under the age of 10, and were named Hudson, 8; Cayden, 6; and Avery, 4.

This fire occurred while Jessi’s husband, Mike Hinrichs, was away on a business trip.

According to the White Bear Lake Fire Department, the fire was called in at 5:26 a.m. by neighbors to Jessi Pierce.

“Upon arrival, crews found a fully involved structure fire and immediately began fire suppression efforts,” the White Bear Lake Fire Department wrote. “Crews were then able to locate an adult, three children and a dog inside of the house. Unfortunately, all were deceased.”

Since then, a cause for the house fire has not yet been disclosed with the public.

Dedicated Reporter Remembered After Tragic Death

Over the past 10 seasons, Jessi Pierce covered the Minnesota Wild’s games on NHL.com, and she also wrote for The New York Times‘ sporting publication, The Athletic.

A graduate of Iowa State University, she had bylines with USA Hockey, the Minnesota Hockey Journal and Massachusetts Hockey as well.

She was lovingly written about by one of her Minnesota Wild reporting peers, Michael Russo, of The Athletic, who wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter:

“Jessi Pierce (Hinrichs) was the most vibrant person — the life of the party, always with a smile on her face, always bringing a passion to every article and podcast and interview she did. Jessi simply loved covering the Wild and hockey throughout Minnesota and had a way of brightening everyone’s day with her upbeat, bubbly personality. I have literally NEVER met anybody that had a way of being EVERYBODY’s friend.”

Continuing, Russo wrote, “More than anything, she absolutely loved Hudson, Cayden and Avery and was the greatest mother who did everything she could to bring joy to her sweetest kids. Even at Friday’s practice in her beloved Iowa State sweatshirt, she was so excited to take them to the seasonal opening of Cup and Cone in WBL.”

Near the end of his post, Russo writes of the impact her loss will have on the media community:

“A lot of tears were shed at the arena yesterday. We, in the Wild media and inside the Wild, will miss seeing Jessi everyday, laughing with her everyday. The press box and press room won’t be the same without her. It’ll be a lot quieter, a lot less funny. But her passion and joy for covering this hockey team and sport will remain.”

See his full post, here:

See the Minnesota Wild’s tribute to Jessi Pierce, here:

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, R-MN, posted on the tragedy on her social media, writing, “John and I are very saddened to hear of the tragic fire that killed Jessi Pierce and her three children. She was a talented journalist and a respected voice in Minnesota’s sports. Our hearts are with her friends, family, and all who loved her.”

A GoFundMe has been set up to assist Jessi’s husband with funeral costs and other expenses during this difficult time. As of the afternoon of Monday, March 23, the fundraiser has brought in over $120,000.

That GoFundMe page can be found, here.