Herb Brooks
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Herbert Paul "Herb" Brooks, Jr. (August 5, 1937 – August 11, 2003) was an American ice hockey coach, best known for coaching the U.S. hockey team to a gold medal at the 1980 Winter Olympics in an event known as the "Miracle on Ice".
On November 13, 2006, Brooks was posthumously inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.[1]
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, to Herbert Brooks, Sr. and Pauline Brooks, he played on the Johnson High School hockey team that won the 1955 state hockey championship.[2] Brooks also played baseball during the summer.
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Brooks later played hockey at the University of Minnesota and was a member of the 1964 and 1968 United States Olympic teams. He almost made the 1960 Olympic team, only to be cut the week before the Olympic games started. He then sat at home and watched the team he almost made win gold.[3] Later, he coached the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers hockey team to three NCAA championships (1974, 1976, and 1979). He coached St. Cloud State University in the mid-1980s. In Minnesota, many consider Brooks the best hockey coach of all time. In 1980, he became the first coach of the United States to lead his team to victory against the USSR in 20 years.
[edit] Later career
He was inducted into the United States Ice Hockey Hall of Fame in 1990.
Herb Brooks later coached in the National Hockey League for the New York Rangers, where he became the fastest coach in Rangers' team history to win 100 games. He also coached the Minnesota North Stars, New Jersey Devils, and Pittsburgh Penguins. He was a long time head scout for the Pittsburgh Penguins from the mid 1990s until the day of his death.
He also coached France in the 1998 Winter Olympics. He again coached the U.S. hockey team at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, this time winning a silver medal.
He was inducted into the International Hockey Hall of Fame in 1999, and the Hockey Hall of Fame, posthumously, in 2006.
[edit] Death and legacy
Brooks died in a one-car accident on the afternoon of August 11, 2003, near Forest Lake, Minnesota, on Interstate 35. He was 66. It is believed that Brooks fell asleep behind the wheel before the accident after driving all night, and neither drugs nor alcohol were responsible.
Disney released a film about the 1980 Olympic team in 2004 called Miracle featuring Kurt Russell playing the part of Brooks (Karl Malden had previously played Brooks in a 1981 television film called Miracle on Ice). Brooks served as a consultant during principal photography, which was completed shortly before his death. At the end of the movie there is a dedication to Brooks. It states at the end, "He never saw it. He lived it."
Upon the 25th anniversary of the Miracle on Ice, the Olympic ice arena in Lake Placid, New York, where the United States won their gold medal, was renamed Herb Brooks Arena. A statue of Brooks depicting his reaction to the victory in the "Miracle" game was erected in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 2003.
An award was created in Herb Brooks name, the Herb Brooks Award, is awarded at the conclusion of the Minnesota State High School League's state hockey tournament to "the most qualified hockey player in the state tournament who strongly represents the values, characteristics, and traits that defined Herb Brooks."[4]
In Blaine, Minnesota, there a training center called Herb Brooks Training Center. It trains hockey players and figure skater skills like Brooks wanted to do.
The road that surrounds the National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, Minnesota is called Herb Brooks Way.
In 2006, Brooks was posthumously inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the Builders category. "A man of passion and dedication, Herb Brooks inspired a generation of Americans to pursue any and all dreams."[5]
[edit] Personal
Brooks was married to his wife Patti and had two kids, Danny and Kelly. [6]
[edit] Coaching statistics
Note: GC = Games coached, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OL = Overtime loss, Pts = Points, Pct = Winning percentage
| Season | Team | League | GC | W | L | T | OL | Pts | Pct |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1972-73 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | NCAA | 34 | 15 | 16 | 3 | -- | 33 | 0.485 |
| 1973-74 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | NCAA | 34 | 17 | 12 | 5 | -- | 39 | 0.574 |
| 1974-75 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | NCAA | 42 | 31 | 10 | 1 | -- | 63 | 0.750 |
| 1975-76 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | NCAA | 38 | 23 | 14 | 1 | -- | 47 | 0.618 |
| 1976-77 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | NCAA | 42 | 17 | 22 | 3 | -- | 37 | 0.440 |
| 1977-78 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | NCAA | 38 | 22 | 14 | 2 | -- | 46 | 0.605 |
| 1978-79 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | NCAA | 44 | 32 | 11 | 1 | -- | 65 | 0.739 |
| 1980 | USA Olympic men's team | IIHF | Olympic gold medal team | ||||||
| 1980-81 | HC Davos | Swiss-A | 28 | 11 | 16 | 1 | -- | 23 | 0.411 |
| 1981-82 | New York Rangers | NHL | 80 | 39 | 27 | 14 | -- | 92 | 0.575 |
| 1982-83 | New York Rangers | NHL | 80 | 35 | 35 | 10 | -- | 80 | 0.500 |
| 1983-84 | New York Rangers | NHL | 80 | 42 | 29 | 9 | -- | 93 | 0.581 |
| 1984-85 | New York Rangers | NHL | 45 | 15 | 22 | 8 | -- | 38 | 0.422 |
| 1986-87 | St. Cloud State Huskies | NCAA | 36 | 25 | 10 | 1 | -- | 51 | 0.708 |
| 1987-88 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 80 | 19 | 48 | 13 | -- | 51 | 0.319 |
| 1991-92 | Utica Devils | AHL | 80 | 34 | 40 | 6 | -- | 74 | 0.463 |
| 1992-93 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 84 | 40 | 37 | 7 | -- | 87 | 0.518 |
| 1998 | France Olympic men's team | IIHF | 11th place finish | ||||||
| 1999-00 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 58 | 29 | 24 | 5 | 0 | 63 | 0.543 |
| 2002 | USA Olympic men's team | IIHF | Olympic silver medal team | ||||||
| NCAA career totals | 308 | 182 | 109 | 17 | -- | 381 | 0.619 | ||
| NHL career totals | 507 | 219 | 222 | 66 | 0 | 504 | 0.497 | ||
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Roy tops 2006 Hall of Fame class". CBC.ca/Sports Online (2006-06-28). Retrieved on 2006-06-28.
- ^ Dohrmann, George (2004-03-22). "High School Heaven: Never mind the Twins, Vikings, T-Wolves and Wild -- there's nothing in Minnesota to match the state hockey tournament". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved on 2008-10-24.
- ^ "Herb Brooks killed in car accident" (August 11, 2003) Sports Illustrated
- ^ "2006-2007 MSHSL Athletic Rules and Policies Manual". Minnesota State High School League (2006-12-06). Retrieved on 2007-03-11.
- ^ "Hockey Hall of Fame: Herb Brooks".
- ^ "Herb Brooks Foundation".
[edit] External links
- Herb Brooks's biography at Legends of Hockey
- Biography – The Herb Brooks Foundation
- Miracle (2004) Movie Origins
- Coach known best for 1980 hockey gold – ESPN Classic
- Herb Brooks killed in car accident – Sports Illustrated
- Herb Brooks' U.S. Olympic Team bio
- Herb Brooks' Gravesite
- Gopher Hockey History Player Info
- The Herb Brooks Foundation
| Preceded by Fred Shero |
Head Coach of the New York Rangers 1981-1985 |
Succeeded by Ted Sator |
| Preceded by Tom McVie |
Head Coach of the New Jersey Devils 1992-93 |
Succeeded by Jacques Lemaire |
| Preceded by Kevin Constantine |
Head Coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins 1999-00 |
Succeeded by Ivan Hlinka |
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