Massachusetts

Pond history

The centrally located pond on the UMass campus was once used for multiple purposes. In the winter students and faculty would cut out blocks of ice to use for refrigeration and annual tug-of-war games between sophomores and freshmen were hosted during the spring months. In 1909 the first formal ice hockey team began playing on the pond as well. UMass fielded one of the earliest non-ivy league programs, playing continually until poor weather conditions and a lack of funding caused the team to cease in 1939. The Minutemen were able to return to the ice after the war but couldn't play at home until 1954.

The lack of a home venue caused the team to suffer through a stretch where they won only 2 games over a 7-year period. Eventually the pond became usable again and UMass were able to play home games with new head coach Steve Kosakowski. The Minutemen performed decently in his 13 seasons and were among 28 teams to found ECAC Hockey. In 1964 the ECAC split into two divisions and any program that did not possess a dedicated indoor arena was placed in ECAC 2. UMass continued with the second-tier conference for 15 years and achieved their greatest success in 1972 under Jack Canniff, winning the conference tournament title.

By the end of the 1970s using the pond as a rink had become untenable and when no alternatives surfaced the program was shuttered.

Return to the Ice

When the Mullins Center opened in 1993 it was designed as a multi-purpose arena and allowed for the university to rekindle its ice hockey program. The men's team started the same year and hit the ice as a Division I independent. With 20 wins in the first season under Joe Mallen, there was hope that the Minutemen could compete in Hockey East. However, once they began a tougher schedule in 1994–95, the team lost a then-school-record 28 games. Though the team rarely finished last in the conference under Mallen, there were very few gains and he was replaced by Don Cahoon in 2000.

Under Cahoon the team began to improve, posting a winning season in 2003 and reaching the conference championship game the following year. His greatest success came after recruiting Jonathan Quick, who helped UMass to reach their first ever NCAA tournament in 2007. Cahoon couldn't keep the success going, however, and after being knocked off in five consecutive conference quarterfinals he retired in 2012.

John Micheletto was tabbed as Cahoon's successor and after a decent first season the team slid down the standing and bottomed out for two consecutive seasons. After the second last-place finish Micheletto was fired and replaced by St. Lawrence head coach Greg Carvel.

Greg Carvel era (2016–present)

In Carvel's first season the team reached a nadir; the Minutemen set a new program record for futility, losing 29 games. Carvel led the team to a much-improved finish in his second season and then team took off in year three. The Minutemen reached their first ever Frozen Four and a berth in the 2019 NCAA Division I National Championship in which the Minutemen ultimately lost to Minnesota-Duluth 3–0. Though the year ended on a sour note, the team posted a new program record for wins (31) while Cale Makar won the school's first Hobey Baker Award.

On April 10, 2021, the Minutemen won their first-ever NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament, beating the St. Cloud State Huskies 5–0.