ECAC Hockey

ECAC Hockey
Established 1962
Association NCAA
Division Division I
Members 12
Sports fielded Ice Hockey (men's: 12 teams; women's: 12 teams)
Region Northeastern United States
Former names ECAC Hockey League (2004-2007)
Eastern College Athletic Conference (1962-2004)
Headquarters Albany, New York
Commissioner Steve Hagwell
Website www.ecachockey.com
Locations

ECAC Hockey is one of the five NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey conferences that compete in NCAA Division I ice hockey. The conference used to be affiliated with the Eastern College Athletic Conference, a consortium of over 300 colleges in the eastern United States. This relationship ended in 2004; however the ECAC abbreviation was retained in the name of the hockey conference.[1] ECAC Hockey also operates a women's ice hockey conference, with the same members as the men's conference.

Contents

History

ECAC Hockey was founded in 1962. In June 1983, concerns that the Ivy League schools were potentially leaving the conference and disagreements over schedule length versus academics caused Boston University, Boston College, Providence, Northeastern and New Hampshire to decide to leave the ECAC to form what would become Hockey East, which began play in the 1984–85 season.[1] By that fall, Maine also departed the ECAC for the new conference.[2] This left the ECAC with twelve teams (Army, Brown, Clarkson, Colgate, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, RPI, St. Lawrence, Vermont, and Yale). Army would stay in the conference until the end of the 1990–91 season, at which point they became independent (they now play in Atlantic Hockey) and were replaced by Union College. Vermont left the ECAC for Hockey East at the end of the 2004–05 season, and were replaced in the conference by Quinnipiac.[1]

Membership

As of the 2006-07 season, all ECAC schools participate with men's and women's teams, making ECAC Hockey the only Division I hockey conference with a full complement of teams for both sexes.[1]

Six of the members of ECAC Hockey are also members of the Ivy League, and all of the Ivy universities with Division I ice hockey programs are also members of ECAC Hockey. Neither the University of Pennsylvania nor Columbia University have intercollegiate ice hockey programs. UPenn supported an intercollegiate varsity hockey program in the past and was an ECAC Hockey member from 1966 to 1978 before the team was disbanded. The Ivy school that has the best regular season record against other Ivy opponents is crowned the Ivy League ice hockey champion. Yale won the 2011 Ivy League ice hockey championship. The Ivy League schools require their teams to play seasons that are about three weeks shorter than those of the other schools in the league.[3] Thus, they enter the league schedule with fewer non-conference warm-up games, though Harvard competes in the annual Beanpot Tournament and Cornell hosts a holiday tournament in Estero, Florida.

Institution Location Nickname Founded Historical Affiliation Enrollment Primary Conference
Brown University Providence, Rhode Island Bears 1764 Nonsectarian, founded by Baptists, but founding charter promises "no religious tests" and "full liberty of conscience"[4] 7,744[5] Ivy League
Clarkson University Potsdam, New York Golden Knights 1896 Private/Non-sectarian 3,100 Liberty League (D-III)
Colgate University Hamilton, New York Raiders 1819 Private/Non-sectarian, founded by Baptists[6] 2,800 Patriot League
Cornell University Ithaca, New York Big Red 1865 Private/Non-sectarian 20,400[7] Ivy League
Dartmouth College Hanover, New Hampshire Big Green 1769 Private/Congregationalist 5,753[8] Ivy League
Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts Crimson 1636 Private/Unitarian 20,042[9] Ivy League
Princeton University Princeton, New Jersey Tigers 1746 Nonsectarian, but founded by Presbyterians[10] 6,677 [11] Ivy League
Quinnipiac University Hamden, Connecticut Bobcats 1929 Private/Non-sectarian 7,700 NEC
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, New York Engineers 1824 Private/Non-sectarian 6,376 Liberty League (D-III)
St. Lawrence University Canton, New York Saints 1856 Non-denominational, founded by Universalist Church of America 2,100 Liberty League (D-III)
Union College Schenectady, New York Dutchmen 1795 Private/Non-sectarian 2,100 Liberty League (D-III)
Yale University New Haven, Connecticut Bulldogs 1701 Private/Congregationalist 11,483[12] Ivy League

Men's ECAC championship games

The ECAC Championship Game has been held at the following sites:

The winner of the game is awarded the Whitelaw Cup and receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Men's Division I Hockey Tournament.

  • 1962 St. Lawrence def. Clarkson 5-2
  • 1963 Harvard def. Boston College 4-3 (ot)
  • 1964 Providence def. St. Lawrence 3-1
  • 1965 Boston College def. Brown 6-2
  • 1966 Clarkson def. Cornell 6-2
  • 1967 Cornell def. Boston University 4-3
  • 1968 Cornell def. Boston College 6-3
  • 1969 Cornell def. Harvard 4-2
  • 1970 Cornell def. Clarkson 3-2
  • 1971 Harvard def. Clarkson 7-4
  • 1972 Boston University def. Cornell 4-1
  • 1973 Cornell def. Boston College 3-2
  • 1974 Boston University def. Harvard 4-2
  • 1975 Boston University def. Harvard 7-3
  • 1976 Boston University def. Brown 9-2
  • 1977 Boston University def. New Hampshire 8-6
  • 1978 Boston College def. Providence 4-2
  • 1979 New Hampshire def. Dartmouth 3-2
  • 1980 Cornell def. Dartmouth 5-1
  • 1981 Providence def. Cornell 8-4
  • 1982 Northeastern def. Harvard 5-2
  • 1983 Harvard def. Providence 4-1
  • 1984 Rensselaer def. Boston University 5-2
  • 1985 Rensselaer def. Harvard 3-1
  • 1986 Cornell def. Clarkson 3-2 (ot)
  • 1987 Harvard def. St. Lawrence 6-3
  • 1988 St. Lawrence def. Clarkson 3-0
  • 1989 St. Lawrence def. Vermont 4-1
  • 1990 Colgate def. Rensselaer 5-4
  • 1991 Clarkson def. St. Lawrence 5-4
  • 1992 St. Lawrence def. Cornell 4-2
  • 1993 Clarkson def. Brown 3-1
  • 1994 Harvard def. Rensselaer 3-0
  • 1995 Rensselaer def. Princeton 5-1
  • 1996 Cornell def. Harvard 2-1
  • 1997 Cornell def. Clarkson 2-1
  • 1998 Princeton def. Clarkson 5-4 (2ot)
  • 1999 Clarkson def. St. Lawrence 3-2
  • 2000 St. Lawrence def. Rensselaer 2-0
  • 2001 St. Lawrence def. Cornell 3-1
  • 2002 Harvard def. Cornell 4-3 (2ot)
  • 2003 Cornell def. Harvard 3-2 (ot)
  • 2004 Harvard def. Clarkson 4-2
  • 2005 Cornell def. Harvard 3-1
  • 2006 Harvard def. Cornell 6-2
  • 2007 Clarkson def. Quinnipiac 4-2
  • 2008 Princeton def. Harvard 4-1
  • 2009 Yale def. Cornell 5-0
  • 2010 Cornell def. Union 3-0
  • 2011 Yale def. Cornell 6-0

Cleary Cup

The Cleary Cup, named for former Harvard player and coach Bill Cleary, is awarded to the regular-season champion (the team with the best in-conference record). At present, this team is given the top seed in the ECAC conference tournament (including the first-round bye given to the top four seeded teams), but is not given any special consideration in the NCAA tournament.

Women's ECAC championship games

Main article: ECAC women's ice hockey
  • 1985 Providence def. New Hampshire
  • 1986 New Hampshire def. Northeastern
  • 1987 New Hampshire def. Northeastern
  • 1988 Northeastern def. Providence
  • 1989 Northeastern def. Providence
  • 1990 New Hampshire def. Providence (in Durham, New Hampshire)
  • 1991 New Hampshire def. Northeastern (Durham)
  • 1992 Providence def. New Hampshire (in Providence, Rhode Island)
  • 1993 Providence def. New Hampshire (in Boston)
  • 1994 Providence def. Northeastern (Providence)
  • 1995 Providence def. New Hampshire (Providence)
  • 1996 New Hampshire def. Providence (Durham)
  • 1997 Northeastern def. New Hampshire (Boston)
  • 1998 Brown def. New Hampshire (Boston)
  • 1999 Harvard def. New Hampshire (Providence)
  • 2000 Brown def. Dartmouth (Providence)
  • 2001 Dartmouth def. Harvard (in Hanover, New Hampshire)
  • 2002 Brown def. Dartmouth (Hanover)
  • 2003 Dartmouth def. Harvard (Providence)
  • 2004 Harvard def. St. Lawrence (in Schenectady, New York)
  • 2005 Harvard def. Dartmouth (Schenectady)
  • 2006 Harvard def. Brown (in Canton, New York)
  • 2007 Dartmouth def. St. Lawrence (Hanover)
  • 2008 Harvard def. St. Lawrence (Boston)
  • 2009 Dartmouth def. Rensselaer (Boston)
  • 2010 Cornell def. Clarkson (in Ithaca, New York)
  • 2011 Cornell def. Dartmouth (in Ithaca, New York)

Conference arenas

School Hockey arena Capacity
Brown Meehan Auditorium (1962) 3,100
Clarkson Cheel Arena (1991) 3,000
Colgate Starr Rink (1959) 2,246
Cornell Lynah Rink (1957) 4,267
Dartmouth Thompson Arena (1975) 4,500
Harvard Bright Hockey Center (1956/1979) 2,850
Princeton Hobey Baker Memorial Rink (1923) 2,092
Quinnipiac TD Bank Sports Center (2007) 3,386
Rensselaer Houston Field House (1949) 4,780
St. Lawrence Appleton Arena (1951) 3,000
Union Frank L. Messa Rink at Achilles Center (1975) 2,225
Yale Ingalls Rink (1958) 3,500

NCAA Records

References

  1. ^ a b c d timeline of ECACH history, ECACHockey.com
  2. ^ About Hockey East
  3. ^ Ivy League standings
  4. ^ Brown's website characterizes it as "the Baptist answer to Congregationalist Yale and Harvard; Presbyterian Princeton; and Episcopalian Penn and Columbia," but adds that at the time it was "the only one that welcomed students of all religious persuasions."[1] Brown's charter stated that "into this liberal and catholic institution shall never be admitted any religious tests, but on the contrary, all the members hereof shall forever enjoy full, free, absolute, and uninterrupted liberty of conscience." The charter called for twenty-two of the thirty-six trustees to be Baptists, but required that the remainder be "five Friends, four Congregationalists, and five Episcopalians"[2]
  5. ^ facts about Brown University
  6. ^ Colgate University: History & Traditions accessed 04-22-2008
  7. ^ Cornell facts sheet
  8. ^ Dartmouth enrollment data sheet
  9. ^ Harvard at a glance
  10. ^ http://www.princeton.edu/~oktour/virtualtour/Stop05.htm Princeton online campus tour
  11. ^ Princeton University profile
  12. ^ Yale University factsheet
  13. ^ St. Lawrence University: Men's Hockey
  14. ^ College Hockey News :: Longest Games
  15. ^ :: Game is longest ever in college hockey
  16. ^ NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey History

External links

ECAC Hockey
Men
Women
NCAA • List of champions: Men / Women • Men's tournament site: Boardwalk Hall
NCAA Division I hockey conferences
Current conferences
Future conferences
NCAA • Championships: Men / Women