The New Beginning: The Launch of the Division 3 Team
12 Years of Division 3 Hockey at Indiana University
Year-By-Year Records | Single Season Records | Career Records | Rich Holdeman ACHA Hall of Fame Class of 2013
AHCA M3 North Regional Tournament Appearances: 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
ICHC Crossroad Cup Champions: 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
Recent
Success: Jack Manard Era
In 2016, the Division 3 Team brought in new Head Coach Jack Manard and Assistant Coach Kevin Wagner. In their first year with the program, they lead the team to a 19-9-1 record, winning the Indiana College Hockey Conference and advancing to the AHCA M3 North Regional Tournament for the first time in program history.
Manard and Wagner have furthered the team success by posting a winning record, claiming the conference title, and securing a trip to the regional tournament in each of the years following. The 2019 season saw the team reach the regional final for the first time where it fell to the eventual national runner-up. The Division 3 Team looks to build on its success each year and has set its sights on earning a bid to Nationals.
Post-COVID school year, Manard and Wagner oversaw the rebuild of IU D3 Hockey to bring the team back to the success they saw from 2016-2020.
The Rich Holdeman Era
1992-2006
In 2009-2010, due to growing popularity, the program split into two teams, thus initiating the launch of Indiana University hockey at the Division 3 level.
The first three years the team was led by coach Tom Brooks, who led the Hoosiers to a 9-10-2 record in their inagural season as well as becoming ranked in the very competitve North region, which has produced at least one team in the ACHA D3 National Championship game every year since 2008, as well as the national champion the past three years.
The program has had some growth stunts over the first few years since inception, but in their 6th season are looking to make major strides towards the future. The Hoosiers have hired IU Hockey alum Rich Gordon to be their next head coach this offseason. Coach Gordon comes to the Hoosiers from Columbus High School where he posted a career record of 198-111-29 over 7 years along with 4 state championship appearances and 1 national tournament appearance coming in this past year.
Along with the hiring of Rich Gordon, the Hoosiers look to move forward as a program through becoming a member of the new Indiana Collegiate Hockey Conference (ICHC) in the 2014-2015 season featuring IU, Ball State, Purdue, and IPFW. The Hoosiers will look to create a new winning tradition in the state of Indiana by trying to claim an ICHC title, while looking to continue the great tradition of hockey at Indiana University that has presided them over the past 45 years.
In 1992, Dr. Burrello stepped down, and a new chapter began with the arrival of coach Rich Holdeman.
After coaching the Hoosiers to a 10-8-1 record in his first season in 1992-1993, Holdeman decided if he was going to run this program he was going to do it in more of a role than just coach. Holdeman took over the reigns of the program on and off the ice, and began to turn Indiana University into a national powerhouse.
In 1994 the Hoosiers joined the American Collegiate Hockey Association, the league the team is still in today. In his first year in the ACHA, Holdeman led the Hoosiers to the National Championship where they would finish as the national runner-up, losing to the host Colorado State 5-3. This would be the beginning of a long run of dominance for the Hoosiers.
Rich Holdeman would guide the Hoosiers to an unprecendented 10 consecutive national tournament appreances, as well as 4 national runner-up finishes. During this time period the Hoosiers hosted the national tournament twice in 2000 and 2001, as well as the inagural conference tournament of the Great Midwestern Hockey League (GMHL) in 2002.
Holdeman left the program after the 2005-2006 season after 13 years with the team. Holdeman far and away has the most wins in IU Hockey history, finishing with a career record of 251-116-19. Coach Holdeman was recgonized for his success by the ACHA on numerous occasions being named ACHA National Coach of the Year in 2002, Southeast Region Coach of the Year in 2005, as well as being inducted into the ACHA’s Hall of Fame in 2013.
Expansion through the 1980s
In the Fall of 1980, Dr. Leonard Burrello, a professor in the School of Education, took over the team as the General Manager and Faculty Advisor. Under the direction of Burrello, the program was lifted to new heights. Indiana University joined and became a core member of the Midwest Collegiate Hockey League, and won the MCHL league or tournament championship four times in the 1980s (1983, 1984, 1988, 1989).
Under the direction of Dr. Leonard Burrello, the program continued to grow and play more games every year, as well as continue to win more. The program compiled an impressive 113-70-9 record in the 1980s under coaches David Hagelin, Garth Hayes, Jim Erickson, Jerry Droppo, George Van Horn, and Francois Hurtubusie.
The Early Beginnings 1969-1979
Hockey at Indiana University began in 1968 when a graduate student named Larry Laczkowski rounded up some local students just to play a few games. The team played just 3 official games in their first season in 1968-1969 under Larry Laczkowski who served as a player/coach, but it was from these humble beginnings that the foundation for hockey at Indiana University was laid.
The program expanded for its first full season in 1969-1970 playing under coach Gary Weitz. Under Weitz the program posted a 3-11-3, however he turned the program around quickly in his second and final year having the team play 21 games and post a record of 16-4-1.
Throughout the 1970s the program rotated through 6 more coaches after Gary Weitz, but still managed to maintain their winning prominence. The Hoosiers posted a record of 94-83-6 in the 70s, while only having one season with a sub-500 record.