Brent Brekke

Brent Brekke
Current position
Title	Head coach
Team	St. Lawrence
Conference	ECAC Hockey
Biographical details
Born	October 16, 1971 (age 52); Minot, ND, USA
Alma mater	Western Michigan
Playing career
1989–1990	Rochester Mustangs
1990–1994	Western Michigan
1994–1996	Cornwall Aces
1994–1996	Dayton Bombers
Position(s)	Defenseman
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1997–1999	Chicago Freeze (assistant)
1999–2008	Cornell (assistant)
2008–2018	Miami (associate)
2018–2019	Clarkson (assistant)
2019–present	St. Lawrence
Head coaching record
Overall	52–92–21 (.379)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
	2021 ECAC Tournament Champion
Awards
	Terry Flanagan Award (2015)

Last updated April 13, 2024

Brent Brekke (born August 16, 1971) is an American former ice hockey player who currently the head coach at St. Lawrence.^[1]

Career

Playing

Brekke played his college hockey at Western Michigan for Bill Wilkinson. He played for years for the Broncos, serving as an alternate captain in his junior season. After being named team captain for his senior season, Brekke helped Western Michigan to a 24-win season, the third-highest win total in program history (as of 2019), and reach the NCAA Tournament for only the second time.^[2] After graduating with a degree in marketing^[3] Brekke embarked on a two-year professional career, splitting time between the AHL and ECHL affiliates of the Quebec Nordiques/Colorado Avalanche, the team that had drafted him in 1991.^[4]

Coaching

After a year off from hockey, Brekke signed on as the Director of Player Personnel and assistant coach for the Chicago Freeze, a junior team in the NAHL. After two years with the Freeze Brekke returned to the college ranks as an assistant at Cornell for Mike Schafer. In nine years Brekke helped the Big Red reach the NCAA Tournament 4 times, including the Frozen Four in 2003, and helped build one of the toughest defensive corps in college hockey history. Brekke was lured away from Ithaca in 2008 by Miami and the RedHawks promptly reach the Championship Game, falling in overtime to Boston University. After two years he was promoted to associate head coach and continued to serve in that capacity for another 8 seasons.

In 2018, with the team stuck in the mire, Brekke and fellow assistant Nick Petraglia both agreed to part ways with the program.^[5] Brekke didn't remain jobless for long, accepting an offer from Clarkson to be an assistant under Casey Jones. In his only season with the Golden Knights Brekke helped Clarkson win its first conference tournament in over a decade.^[6]

Less than two months after St. Lawrence fired Mark Morris ^[7] the Saints named Brekke the 15th head coach in program history.^[8]

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
Season	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
St. Lawrence Saints (ECAC Hockey)(2019–present)
2019–20	St. Lawrence	4–27–5	2–18–2	12th	ECAC First Round
2020–21	St. Lawrence	6–8–3	4–8–2	3rd	ECAC Champion*
2021–22	St. Lawrence	11–19–7	7–10–5	8th	ECAC Quarterfinals
2022–23	St. Lawrence	17–19–0	12–10–0	4th	ECAC Quarterfinals
2023–24	St. Lawrence	14–19–6	8–10–4	7th	ECAC Runner-Up
St. Lawrence:		52–92–21 (.379)	25–46–10 (.388)
Total:		52–92–21 (.379)
National champion Postseason invitational champion Conference regular season champion Conference regular season and conference tournament champion Division regular season champion Division regular season and conference tournament champion Conference tournament champion

* St. Lawrence was forced to withdraw from the NCAA Tournament due to Brekke testing positive for COVID-19.^[9]

Related Research Articles

ECAC Hockey is one of the six 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. ECAC Hockey is the only ice hockey conference with identical memberships in both its women's and men's divisions. Cornell has won the most ECAC men's hockey championships with 13, followed by Harvard at 11. Quinnipiac, which joined the league in 2005, already has 7 regular season championships. ECAC Hockey teams have won 10 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championships, most recently in 2023.

Jerry York is an American former ice hockey coach who was the men's ice hockey coach at Boston College. York is the winningest coach in NCAA hockey, and leads the all-time list as the only Division I head coach with over 1,000 wins. He has won the NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey title five times as a coach, at Bowling Green State University in 1984 and at Boston College in 2001, 2008, 2010 and 2012, tying him with Murray Armstrong for second-most all-time behind only Vic Heyliger (6). York received the Spencer Penrose Trophy for being named Division I Coach of the Year in 1977. On June 25, 2019, York was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the Builders Category.

The St. Lawrence Saints Men's Ice Hockey team, colloquially known as the "Skating Saints", is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents St. Lawrence University. The Saints are a member of the ECAC Hockey. They have played at Appleton Arena in Canton, New York, since 1951. Prior to the arena's construction, the men's team played outdoors at the current location of Whitman Hall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowling Green Falcons men's ice hockey</span> Ice hockey team

The Bowling Green Falcons ice hockey team is the ice hockey team that represents Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. The school's team competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. The Falcons last played in the NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey Tournament in 2019. The Falcons have won one NCAA Division I championship, coming in 1984, defeating the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs in the longest championship game in the tournament's history.

William Wilkinson is a retired Canadian ice hockey coach. He coached the Wayne State Warriors men's ice hockey program for its entire 9-year existence at the Division I level. Prior to that, Wilkinson coach the Western Michigan for seventeen seasons.

The Western Michigan Broncos men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents Western Michigan University. The Broncos are a member of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC). They play at Lawson Arena in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States.

The Clarkson Golden Knights women's hockey team is an NCAA Division I ice hockey team that represents Clarkson University in rural Potsdam, New York. The Golden Knights have been a member of ECAC Hockey since 2004, and play home games in Cheel Arena on the Clarkson University campus.

The 1999 ECAC Hockey Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 38th tournament in league history. It was played between March 12 and March 20, 1999. Quarterfinal games were played at home team campus sites, while the final five games were played at the Olympic Arena in Lake Placid, New York. By winning the tournament, Clarkson received the ECAC's automatic bid to the 1999 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.

Mark Morris is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman. He was the head coach of St. Lawrence from 2016-2019, succeeding Greg Carvel who departed for UMass.

George Roll is an American ice hockey coach. He was the head coach of the Clarkson Golden Knights from 2003 through the end of the 2010-2011 season, leading them to their most recent conference championship and NCAA tournament appearance.

Leon Abbott is a former college ice hockey coach who is most remembered for being fired by Boston University six games into the 1973–74 season for violating NCAA eligibility rules.

The 2010–11 Minnesota–Duluth Bulldogs men's ice hockey team represented the University of Minnesota Duluth in the 2010–11 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season. The Bulldogs were coached by Scott Sandelin, who was in his 11th year as head coach. His assistant coaches were Brett Larson and Derek Plante. The team captain was Mike Montgomery and the assistant captains were Jack Connolly and Mike Connolly. The team played their home games in AMSOIL Arena and were members of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

Bernie McKinnon was a Canadian ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer and tennis coach for St. Lawrence for over 30 years. He was the head coach both men's and women's teams for most sports as well as for freshman teams when varsity status was limited to three years.

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.

The 2020–21 Colgate Raiders Men's ice hockey season was the 91st season of play for the program and the 60th season in the ECAC Hockey conference. The Raiders represented the Colgate University and played their home games at Class of 1965 Arena, and were coached by Don Vaughan, in his 28th season as their head coach.

The 2020–21 St. Lawrence Saints Men's ice hockey season was the 81st season of play for the program and the 60th season in the ECAC Hockey conference. The Saints represented the St. Lawrence University and were coached by Brent Brekke, in his 2nd season.

The 2020–21 Quinnipiac Bobcats Men's ice hockey season was the 45th season of play for the program, the 23rd at the Division I level and the 16th season in the ECAC Hockey conference. The Bobcats represented the Quinnipiac University and played their home games at the Frank Perrotti, Jr. Arena in the People's United Center, and were coached by Rand Pecknold, in his 27th season.

The 2020–21 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's ice hockey season was the 61st season of play for the program and the 4th season in the Big Ten Conference. The Fighting Irish represented the University of Notre Dame and were coached by Jeff Jackson, in his 16th season.

The 2020–21 ECAC Hockey men's season was the 60th season of play for ECAC Hockey and took place during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season. The regular was delayed until on November 22, 2020 and conclude on March 6, 2021.

Andrew Jones is an American ice hockey coach and former player. He was named as the head coach for the Bentley Falcons on June 28, 2023.

References

↑ "Brent Brekke". St. Lawrence Saints. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
↑ "Western Michigan Men's Hockey Team History". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
↑ "Brent Brekke". Clarkson Golden knights. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
↑ "Brent Brekke". Hockey DB. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
↑ "Hockey Staff Announces Changes". Miami RedHawks. March 17, 2019. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
↑ "Clarkson Men's Hockey Team History". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
↑ "St. Lawrence Fires Mark Morris". College Hockey news. March 29, 2019. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
↑ "Brent Brekke Named Head Coach for Men's Ice Hockey". St. Lawrence Saints. May 25, 2019. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
↑ "St. Lawrence withdraws from NCAA men's hockey tournament after coach tests positive for COVID-19". ESPN. March 21, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.

External links

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

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Bob Marshall	CCHA Best Defensive Defenseman 1993–94	Succeeded by Steve Halko

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] "Brent Brekke". St. Lawrence Saints. Retrieved November 5, 2019.

[2] "Western Michigan Men's Hockey Team History". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 5, 2019.

[3] "Brent Brekke". Clarkson Golden knights. Retrieved November 5, 2019.

[4] "Brent Brekke". Hockey DB. Retrieved November 5, 2019.

[5] "Hockey Staff Announces Changes". Miami RedHawks. March 17, 2019. Retrieved November 5, 2019.

[6] "Clarkson Men's Hockey Team History". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 5, 2019.

[7] "St. Lawrence Fires Mark Morris". College Hockey news. March 29, 2019. Retrieved November 4, 2019.

[8] "Brent Brekke Named Head Coach for Men's Ice Hockey". St. Lawrence Saints. May 25, 2019. Retrieved November 5, 2019.

[9] "St. Lawrence withdraws from NCAA men's hockey tournament after coach tests positive for COVID-19". ESPN. March 21, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.

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v t e St. Lawrence Saints men's ice hockey
Playing venues	Weeks Field Rink (1925–1929) Brewer Field Rink (1929–1930) Appleton Arena (1951–present)
Head coaches	D. F. McCarthy (1925–1926) Formoza Degre (1926–1928) James Mallon (1929–1930) Alfred Sheard (1938–1941) Jack Klemens (1946–1947) Paul Patten (1947–1950) Olav Kollevoll (1950–1955) George Menard (1955–1967, 1968–1971) Bernie McKinnon (1967–1968, 1971–1976) Leon Abbott (1976–1979) Dale Henwood (1979–1980) Mike McShane (1980–1985) Joe Marsh (1985–2012) Greg Carvel (2012–2016) Mark Morris (2016–2019) Brent Brekke (2019–present)
Seasons	1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1942–43 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24
Conference affiliations	Tri-State League (1950–1972) ECAC Hockey (1961–present)
Rivalries	Clarkson Golden Knights
Culture & lore	North Country Thanksgiving Festival
All-time leaders	Pete Lappin (187 Points) Brian McFarlane (101 Goals) Bill Sloan (65 Wins)
Frozen Four appearances	1952 1955 1956 1959 1960 1961 1962 1988 2000
NCAA Tournament appearances	1952 1955 1956 1959 1960 1961 1962 1983 1987 1988 1989 1992 1999 2000 2001 2007 2021*
Conference Tournament titles	ECAC: 1962 1988 1989 1992 2000 2001 2021
St. Lawrence University Canton, NY