Nine coaches who have enjoyed on-ice success in 2019-20 have been named finalists for the Spencer Penrose Award, given annually to the CCM/AHCA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Coach of the Year.
Selected by the nation's 60 NCAA Division I head coaches, the winner will be announced on Tuesday, April 7. The nominees represent any coach who won or shared Coach of the Year honors in his conference this past season, coaches whose teams are ranked in the Top Four of the final Pairwise Rankings, and also include a recommended nomination from the Big Ten conference (Bob Motzko of Minnesota).
In addition, the AHCA Awards Committee has nominated Greg Powers of Arizona State, coach of the sole NCAA Division I independent program, on the basis of an NCAA Tournament qualifying position in the Pairwise Rankings.
Of this year's finalists, two are past recipients of this award: Mike Hastings of Minnesota State (2015) and Scott Sandelin of Minnesota Duluth (2004).
AWARDS SEASON: 5 Finalists named for 2020 Mike Richter Award | 10 candidates up for the Hobey Baker Award
Four schools have captured four Penrose awards: Boston College, Boston University, Denver and New Hampshire. The four Denver awards were presented to four different coaches: Murray Armstrong, Ralph Backstrom, George Gwozdecky and 2017 recipient Jim Montgomery.
Four schools claim three winners: Clarkson, Colorado College, Harvard and North Dakota. Three different coaches received those awards at Clarkson and CC. For Clarkson: Bill Harrison, Jerry York and Bill O'Flaherty. For Colorado College: Cheddy Thompson, Tony Frasca and Don Lucia.
From this year's finalists, no coach from AIC, Arizona State or Bemidji State has ever won this award. (Bemidji State has had multiple COY recipients prior to entering Division I.)
| Name | School | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Brad Berry | North Dakota | NCHC Coach of the Year/Pairwise Top 4 |
| Red Gendron | Maine | HE Coach of the Year |
| Mike Hastings* | Minnesota State | Pairwise Top 4 |
| Eric Lang | AIC | Atlantic Hockey Coach of the Year |
| Bob Motzko | Minnesota | Big Ten |
| Greg Powers | Arizona State | Pairwise Qualifier |
| Scott Sandelin* | Minnesota-Duluth | Pairwise Top 4 |
| Mike Schafer | Cornell | ECAC Hockey Coach of the Year/Pairwise Top 4 |
| Tom Serratore | Bemidji State | WCHA Coach of the Year |
* Past Spencer Penrose Award Winner
The Spencer Penrose Award is named in memory of the Colorado Springs benefactor who built the Broadmoor Hotel Complex, site of the first 10 NCAA championship hockey tournaments.
The CCM AHCA COACH of the YEAR AWARDS are sponsored by CCM HOCKEY and chosen by members of the AMERICAN HOCKEY COACHES ASSOCIATION. CCM is the legendary hockey brand dedicated to the endless pursuit of performance by delivering game-changing, head-to-toe innovative hockey equipment to players worldwide.
Previous winners of the Spencer Penrose Award
| Year | Name | School |
|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Edward Jeremiah | Dartmouth |
| 1952 | Cheddy Thompson | Colorado College |
| 1953 | John Mariucci | Minnesota |
| 1954 | Vic Heyliger | Michigan |
| 1955 | Ralph “Cooney” Weiland | Harvard |
| 1956 | William Harrison | Clarkson |
| 1957 | Jack Riley | Army |
| 1958 | Harry Cleverly | Boston University |
| 1959 | John “Snooks” Kelley | Boston College |
| 1960 | Jack Riley | Army |
| 1961 | Murray Armstrong | Denver |
| 1962 | Jack Kelley | Colby |
| 1963 | Tony Frasca | Colorado College |
| 1964 | Tom Eccleston | Providence |
| 1965 | Jim Fullerton | Brown |
| 1966 | Amo Bessone | Michigan State |
| 1967 | Edward Jeremiah | Dartmouth |
| 1968 | Ned Harkness | Cornell |
| 1969 | Charlie Holt | New Hampshire |
| 1970 | John MacInnes | Michigan Tech |
| 1971 | Ralph “Cooney” Weiland | Harvard |
| 1972 | John “Snooks” Kelley | Boston College |
| 1973 | Len Ceglarski | Boston College |
| 1974 | Charlie Holt | New Hampshire |
| 1975 | Jack Parker | Boston University |
| 1976 | John MacInnes | Michigan Tech |
| 1977 | Jerry York | Clarkson |
| 1978 | Jack Parker | Boston University |
| 1979 | Charlie Holt | New Hampshire |
| 1980 | Rick Comley | Northern Michigan |
| 1981 | Bill O’Flaherty | Clarkson |
| 1982 | Fernie Flaman | Northeastern |
| 1983 | Bill Cleary | Harvard |
| 1984 | Mike Sertich | Minnesota Duluth |
| 1985 | Len Ceglarski | Boston College |
| 1986 | Ralph Backstrom | Denver |
| 1987 | John “Gino” Gasparini | North Dakota |
| 1988 | Frank Anzalone | Lake Superior |
| 1989 | Joe Marsh | St. Lawrence |
| 1990 | Terry Slater | Colgate |
| 1991 | Rick Comley | Northern Michigan |
| 1992 | Ron Mason | Michigan State |
| 1993 | George Gwozdecky | Miami |
| 1994 | Don Lucia | Colorado College |
| 1995 | Shawn Walsh | Maine |
| 1996 | Bruce Crowder | UMass Lowell |
| 1997 | Dean Blais | North Dakota |
| 1998 | Tim Taylor | Yale |
| 1999 | Richard Umile | New Hampshire |
| 2000 | Joe Marsh | St. Lawrence |
| 2001 | Dean Blais | North Dakota |
| 2002 | Tim Whitehead | Maine |
| 2003 | Bob Daniels | Ferris State |
| 2004 | Scott Sandelin | Minnesota Duluth |
| 2005 | George Gwozdecky | Denver |
| 2006 | Enrico Blasi | Miami |
| 2007 | Jeff Jackson | Notre Dame |
| 2008 | Red Berenson | Michigan |
| 2009 | Jack Parker | Boston University |
| 2010 | Wayne Wilson | RIT |
| 2011 | Nate Leaman | Union |
| 2012 | Bob Daniels | Ferris State |
| 2013 | Norm Bazin | UMass Lowell |
| 2014 | Rick Bennett | Union |
| 2015 | Mike Hastings | Minnesota State |
| 2016 | Rand Pecknold | Quinnipiac |
| 2017 | Jim Montgomery | Denver |
| 2018 | Jeff Jackson | Notre Dame |
| 2019 | Greg Carvel | Massachusetts |
