READING, PA – In our continued efforts to get you ready for the 2009 NCAA Frozen Four tournament, we continue our college hockey primers describing each of the leagues that will participants of this years tournament. Today we focus on Hockey East, and learn some of the history behind the legendary league. 
The following is from Hockey East’s web site’s history link. Hockey East has continued a steady rise to prominence since its founding charter on July 11, 1983, when the possibility of an apparent Ivy League departure threatened the ECAC. In response, the athletics directors from Boston College, Boston University, New Hampshire, Northeastern and Providence unveiled a new Division I men’s ice hockey conference. Together, Bill Flynn of Boston College, John Simpson of Boston University, Andy Mooradian of New Hampshire, Joe Zabilski of Northeastern and Lou Lamoriello of Providence launched Hockey East. Lamoriello assumed the role of the league’s first commissioner. Later that summer, the Board of Directors added the University of Maine and the University of Lowell (now UMass Lowell). Official conference competition of the seven-team league began with the 1984-85 season, and expansion brought the league to nine teams with the additions of Merrimack College (1989) and the University of Massachusetts (1993). The entry of the University of Vermont for the 2005-06 season brought the conference membership to 10 teams. Since its inception, Hockey East has set new competitive standards for college hockey success, annually compiling an impressive collective winning percentage against non-conference opponents, including a record .705 during the 2002-03 season. Over the last 16 years, Hockey East has cemented itself as the nation’s most elite league, having earned 25 of the 64 berths in the NCAA Frozen Four and boasting five NCAA title winners: the University of Maine in 1993 and 1999, Boston University in 1995 and Boston College in 2001 and 2008. Three of the four Frozen Four participants in 1999 came from the Hockey East ranks, and in 2007, both Boston College and the University of Maine made it to the semifinal round in St. Louis, after five squads (including Boston University, Massachusetts and New Hampshire) were selected for the 16-team NCAA field. Last year, after finishing the season with nine-game winning streak, Boston College claimed its third national championship in school history defeating Notre Dame, 4-1, at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. More than 43 Hockey East were regulars in the NHL in 2007-08, to go along with 53 regulars in the America Hockey League (AHL) last season. Several Hockey East alumni were able to bask in the glow of the Stanley Cup finals between the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins. The Stanley Cup runner-up Penguins had four Hockey East alums on their squad: Former Eagles Brooks Orpik and Rob Scuderi, BU’s Ryan Whitney and UNH’s Ty Conklin all enjoyed a lengthy post-season run with Pittsburgh. Four league alumni also won the AHL’s Calder Cup with the Chicago Wolves; including UMass’ Matt Anderson, Maine’s Mike Hamilton, along with fellow UNH Wildcats Darren Haydar and Jason Krog. Krog was the AHL’s MVP, while Wolves captain Haydar took home playoff MVP honors. Former Vermont Catamount Martin St. Louis had a standout season with the Tampa Bay Lightning, posting 83 points (25g,58a), notching his 500th career point and playing in his 600th career game. Another former Catamount, Patrick Sharp, tallied 36 goals on the year for the Chicago Blackhawks and amassed a rating of +23, good for 14th in the NHL. Tim Thomas, a Catamount from 1993-97, helped the Boston Bruins get to the playoffs for the first time since 2004 with his 2.44 GAA, which tied him for 15th in the NHL. Conklin was second in the NHL with a .923 save percentage in 33 games for the Penguins. Former Maine Black Bear Paul Kariya assisted on 49 goals this season for the St. Louis Blues. In total, 50 current Hockey East players have been selected in the NHL Entry Draft, 11 of which come from the Boston College Eagles squad. Hockey East boasts 28 all-time first round picks in the 24-year history of the league, which includes Boston University’s sophomore forward Colin Wilson selected seventh overall by the Nashville Predators in 2008 Six of the 12 participating schools reside in Massachusetts, while the rest reside in New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, and Rhode Island. Below are the list of participating schools. University of Massachusetts-Lowell Location: Lowell, MA 01854 Founded: 1975 Undergraduate Enrollment: 6,000 Alumni: Ron Hainsey, Dwayne Roloson Massachusetts Location: Amherst, MA 01003 Founded: 1863 Undergraduate Enrollment: 18,500 Alumni: Brad Norton Merrimack Location: North Andover, MA 01845 Founded: 1947 Undergraduate Enrollment: 2,150 Alumni: Matt Foy Boston University Location: Boston, MA 02215 Founded: 1839 Undergraduate Enrollment: 15,820 Alumni: Chris Drury, Keith Tkachuk, Rick DiPietro Boston College: Location: Chestnut Hill, MA 02467 Founded: 1863 Undergraduate Enrollment: 14,500 Alumni: Brian Leetch, Brian Gionta, Marty Reasoner Northeastern Location: Boston, MA 02115 Founded: 1898 Undergraduate Enrollment: 15,000 Alumni: Dan McGillis, Mike Ryan New Hampshire Location: Durham, NH 03824 Founded: 1866 Undergraduate Enrollment: 10,900 Alumni: Ty Conklin, Jason Krog, Jeff Lazaro Maine Location: Orono, ME 04469 Founded: 1865 Undergraduate Enrollment: 11,300 Alumni: Paul Kariya, Dustin Penner Providence Location: Providence, RI 02918 Founded: 1917 Undergraduate Enrollment: 3,912 Alumni: Hal Gill, Fernando Pesani Vermont Location: Burlington, VT 05405 Founded: 1791 Undergraduate Enrollment: 9,040 Alumni: Aaron Miller, Martin St. Louis, Tim Thomas Contact the author at Brian.Jennings@prohockeynews.com
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