Gerry Powers

Gerry Powers
Gerry Powers
Born	Brampton, Ontario, Canada
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	183 lb (83 kg; 13 st 1 lb)
Position	Goaltender
Caught	Left
Played for	Denver
NHL Draft	Undrafted
Playing career	1966–1971

Last updated July 11, 2020

Gerald 'Gerry' Powers is a retired Canadian ice hockey player. He helped the Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey win consecutive NCAA National Titles in 1968 and 1969. He received the Tournament MOP in 1968 and finished his college career with a then-NCAA-record 76 victories and 13 shoutous, currently third- and second-all-time respectively for the Pioneers (as of 2019).

Career

Powers joined the varsity squad in 1966–67, winning all 22 games for Denver that season, but he was outshone by fellow sophomore goalie Ken Dryden. Powers helped Denver finish second in the WCHA but because the conference tournament was split along regional lines the Pioneers were placed in the same division as the top-seeded Fighting Sioux. Denver would easily defeat their first round opponent, Colorado College before falling to North Dakota in the second round 2–3, narrowly missing out on the 1967 NCAA Tournament.

Powers returned as the starter for his junior season and with a loaded team, Denver set its sights on the title. After some early season trouble Denver got hot after the new year and didn't lose another game all season. Powers set new team records with 7 shutouts that season as well as 22 consecutive wins (still team records as of 2018). The WCHA had realigned its tournament and abandoned the regional matchups meaning top-seeded Denver would play the worst team in each round and dominated the competition, being named co-champions of the 1968 Tournament. While Powers wasn't called upon much in the conference championship he was much more intrinsic to Denver's chances in the National Tournament. After opening with a 4–1 win over Boston College Denver met North Dakota in the final. Both Powers and Mike Curran kept the game scoreless until the third period when Denver scored a power play goal. While DU's offense rose to the occasion in the final frame, the Fighting Sioux wilted and Powers shut the opposition out, earning the first championship shutout in NCAA history.^[1] Powers tied the NCAA record with a 0.50 goals against average in the tournament (set the year before) and was named as Tournament MOP.^[2]

The following season Denver continued their torrid pace. In his final season with the Pioneers Powers won a further 26 games, setting a new program record with 76 victories (3rd most as of 2018) and recorded 5 more shutouts to bright his career total up to 13, yet another Denver record (2nd most as of 2018). While Powers wasn't able to continue his winning streak past the first game of the season he did help Denver win a second consecutive tournament championship and make the 1969 NCAA Tournament. Denver's offense was more in force than it had been the year before and Powers had an easy task in the semifinal before the long-awaited showdown with Cornell. The title game brought together two senior goalies with the most wins in NCAA history (Dryden's 76 to Powers 75) and while the future Hall of Famer would falter in his final game, Powers would not. Gerry turned away 33 of Cornell's 36 shots and lead the Pioneers to the program's fifth national championship in only 11 seasons. The two netminders both left the championship game with 76 wins, an NCAA record for three seasons that would stand for over 20 years.

After graduating with a bachelor's in Marketing and Business Powers continued his playing career for the Galt Hornets, helping the team to win the Allan Cup in 1971. After retiring as a player Powers founded an advertising company and later became a real estate broker.

Powers was inducted into the Denver Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010 and received the Daniel Ritchie Spirit Award in 2016.

Awards and honors

Award	Year
All-WCHA Second Team	1967–68	^[3]
All-NCAA All-Tournament First Team	1968	^[4]
All-WCHA Second Team	1968–69	^[3]
All-NCAA All-Tournament First Team	1969	^[4]

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The 1959–60 Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey team represented University of Denver in college ice hockey. In its 4th year under head coach Murray Armstrong the team compiled a 27–4–3 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the second time. The Pioneers defeated Michigan Tech 5–3 in the championship game at the Boston Arena in Boston, Massachusetts. Denver set a record for the most wins by a team in one season, breaking the previous high of 25 set by Colorado College in 1956–57.

The 1960–61 Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey team represented University of Denver in college ice hockey. In its 5th year under head coach Murray Armstrong the team compiled a 30–1–1 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the third time in four years. The Pioneers defeated St. Lawrence 12–2 in the championship game at the DU Arena in Denver, Colorado. Denver set a record for the most wins by a team in one season, breaking the previous high of 27 they had earned the previous year.

The 1961–62 Michigan Tech Huskies men's ice hockey team represented Michigan Tech University in college ice hockey. In its 6th year under head coach John MacInnes the team compiled a 29–3–0 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the third time in its history. The Pioneers defeated Clarkson 7–1 in the championship game at the Utica Memorial Auditorium in Utica, New York.

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The 1967–68 Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey team represented University of Denver in college ice hockey. In its 12th year under head coach Murray Armstrong the team compiled a 28–5–1 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the seventh time. The Pioneers defeated North Dakota 4–0 in the championship game at the Duluth Arena Auditorium in Duluth, Minnesota, the third championship meeting between he two teams. Gerry Powers recorded the first shutout in the championship game and tied the record for lowest tournament goals against average (0.50).

The 1968–69 Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey team represented University of Denver in college ice hockey. In its 13th year under head coach Murray Armstrong the team compiled a 26–6–0 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the eighth time. The Pioneers defeated Cornell 4–3 in the championship game at the Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs, Colorado. This was Denver's second consecutive championship and fifth in eleven years. Senior goaltender Gerry Powers tied the all-time NCAA career record of 76 wins in the championship match against the record-holder Ken Dryden.

The 1974–75 Michigan Tech Huskies men's ice hockey team represented Michigan Tech University in college ice hockey. In its 19th year under head coach John MacInnes the team compiled a 32–10–0 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the fourth time in its history. The Huskies defeated Minnesota 6–1 in the championship game at the St. Louis Arena in St. Louis, Missouri, a rematch of the previous season's championship game.

The 1975–76 Minnesota Golden Gophers men's ice hockey team represented the University of Minnesota in college ice hockey. In its 4th year under head coach Herb Brooks the team compiled a 28–14–2 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the third consecutive year and seventh all-time. The Golden Gophers defeated Michigan Tech 6–4 in the championship game at the DU Arena in Denver, Colorado to win their second national championship.

The 1978–79 Minnesota Golden Gophers men's ice hockey team represented the University of Minnesota in college ice hockey. In its 7th year under head coach Herb Brooks the team compiled a 32–11–1 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the eighth time. The Golden Gophers defeated North Dakota 4–3 in the championship game at the Olympia Stadium in Detroit, Michigan to win their third national championship.

The 1979–80 North Dakota Fighting Sioux men's ice hockey team represented the University of North Dakota in college ice hockey. In its 2nd year under head coach John Gasparini the team compiled a 31–8–1 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the eighth time. The Fighting Sioux defeated Northern Michigan 5–2 to win the championship game at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island.

The 1981–82 North Dakota Fighting Sioux men's ice hockey team represented the University of North Dakota in college ice hockey. In its 4th year under head coach John Gasparini the team compiled a 35–12–0 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the ninth time. The Fighting Sioux defeated Wisconsin 5–2 to win the championship game at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island.

The 1982–83 Wisconsin Badgers men's ice hockey team represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison in college ice hockey. In its first year under head coach Jeff Sauer, the team compiled a 33–10–2 record. The Badgers won the 1983 National Championship, their fourth title.

The 1986–87 North Dakota Fighting Sioux men's ice hockey team represented the University of North Dakota in college ice hockey. In its 9th year under head coach John Gasparini the team compiled a 40–8–0 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the eleventh time. The Fighting Sioux defeated defending champion Michigan State 5–3 to win the championship game at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan.

The 1996–97 North Dakota Fighting Sioux men's ice hockey team represented the University of North Dakota in college ice hockey during the 1996–97 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season. In its 3rd year under head coach Dean Blais the team compiled a 31–10–2 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the thirteenth time. The Fighting Sioux defeated Boston University 6–4 to win the championship game at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

References

↑ "GERRY POWERS TO RECEIVE 2016 DANIEL RITCHIE SPIRIT AWARD". Denver Pioneers. March 29, 2016. Retrieved April 11, 2019.
↑ "Awards - NCAA (Championship) Tournament MVP". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 2018-07-20.
1 2 "WCHA All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
1 2 "NCAA Frozen Four Records" (PDF). NCAA.org. Retrieved 2013-06-19.

External links

Biographical information and career statistics from Eliteprospects.com , or The Internet Hockey Database

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Skip Stanowski	NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player 1968	Succeeded by Keith Magnuson

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[1] "GERRY POWERS TO RECEIVE 2016 DANIEL RITCHIE SPIRIT AWARD". Denver Pioneers. March 29, 2016. Retrieved April 11, 2019.

[2] "Awards - NCAA (Championship) Tournament MVP". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 2018-07-20.

[wcha-3] 1 2 "WCHA All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.

[ncaa-4] 1 2 "NCAA Frozen Four Records" (PDF). NCAA.org. Retrieved 2013-06-19.