Jim Salfi

Jim Salfi
Biographical details
Born	April 1, 1942 (age 80); Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
Alma mater	St. Lawrence University
Playing career
1961–1964	St. Lawrence
Position(s)	Defenceman
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1964–1972	Pennsylvania
1972–1979	Rensselaer
1999–2012	Capital District Selects (HC/GM/Owner)
Head coaching record
Overall	183–192–7 (.488) [College]

Last updated September 22, 2022

Jim Salfi is a Canadian former ice hockey coach, player, General manager and team owner. He was the head coach of both the Pennsylvania and Rensselaer ice hockey programs early in his career.^[1]

Career

Salfi entered the college ranks with St. Lawrence University in 1960. He joined the varsity ice hockey team as a sophomore (a standard practice at the time) and helped the Saints win the first ECAC Hockey conference tournament in 1962. Their season ended on a sour note, however, as St. Lawrence dropped both NCAA tournament games by a combined score of 11–2.^[2] The following season Salfi's team posted an even better record but lost in the ECAC semifinal and were left out of the national tournament. For his senior season Salfi served as team co-Captain with Alfred Bloomer^[3] but the team slid back in the standings, finishing 14th in the conference but were ranked 7th due to their strength of schedule. The Saints upset #2 Army in the first round before dropping Tri-State League rival Rensselaer in the semifinal. Though Salfi's team fell in the final to Providence their appearance in the final should have made them the at-large selection for the #2 eastern seed, however, their record was 13-10-2 and the NCAA selection committee decided on 17-7 Rensselaer instead.

After graduating that spring Salfi received a surprising offer to coach the Penn Quakers despite his sparse résumé.^[4] While taking graduate classes Salfi led the program as it was promoted to varsity status in his second year and the team responded by posting a 16–8 record. When the Quakers started playing against some of the better teams in his third season the wins were predictably harder to come by but their first victory against Dartmouth proved that Pennsylvania could compete. Salfi slowly built the program both on and off the ice, recruiting talented players who could challenge the championship squads iced by conference rivals Cornell and Boston University while also laying the groundwork for a new on-campus ice rink. Salfi met Penn alumnus, and class of 1923 president, Howard Butcher III at a party and convinced the stock broker to build a new arena for the program.^[5]

By 1971 Salfi was able to pull the Quakers out of the ECAC cellar, getting the team to make its first appearance in a conference tournament. The following season was even better with Pennsylvania finishing 4th in the conference and earning a home playoff game that they unfortunately lost. With the program on the upswing it came as a shock to some when Salfi left the university in 1972 to take the coaching position at Rensselaer but Salfi had noticed a significant lack of interest with his team by the school's administration. With RPI Salfi took over a program that had recently climbed out of a 4-year slump but had yet to reclaim its former glory. The Engineers finished in 8th place each of Salfi's two first seasons and came out with a shocking upset of #1 New Hampshire in 1974, its first postseason win in a decade. After two middling seasons Rensselaer returned to the conference tournament in 1977 but couldn't get out of the first round. Even after managing to get a home game the following year the Engineers were still unable to escape the quarterfinals. In 1978–79 RPI had a disastrous season, finishing 13th in the conference and Salfi was out as coach soon thereafter.

Salfi remained outside hockey for much of the next twenty years but in 1999 he founded the Capital District Selects, a junior team in upstate New York and ran the team as owner and general manager for over a dozen years. In that time he also served as head coach on three separate occasions. Towards the end of his tenure with the team the program could barely win a game, finishing their final season in Troy, New York 1-39-5. Afterwards Salfi sold his interest in the team and retired as an executive.

Head coaching record

College

Statistics overview
Season	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
Pennsylvania Quakers (Independent)(1965–1967)
1965–66	Pennsylvania	16–8–0
1966–67	Pennsylvania	13–11–0
Pennsylvania:		29–19–0
Pennsylvania Quakers(ECAC Hockey)(1967–1972)
1967–68	Pennsylvania	6–18–0	1–15–0	17th
1968–69	Pennsylvania	7–15–0	1–14–0	17th
1969–70	Pennsylvania	8–16–0	3–12–0	16th
1970–71	Pennsylvania	14–11–0	11–8–0	7th	ECAC Quarterfinals
1971–72	Pennsylvania	16–9–0	14–7–0	t–4th	ECAC Quarterfinals
Pennsylvania:		51–69–0	30–56–0
Rensselaer Engineers (ECAC Hockey)(1972–1979)
1972–73	Rensselaer	16–15–0	11–9–0	t–7th*	ECAC Quarterfinals
1973–74	Rensselaer	14–15–1	8–9–0	8th	ECAC third-place game (loss)
1974–75	Rensselaer	14–13–1	8–10–1	10th
1975–76	Rensselaer	13–13–2	9–12–2	10th
1976–77	Rensselaer	17–12–1	14–10–0	6th	ECAC Quarterfinals
1977–78	Rensselaer	19–9–1	13–8–0	4th	ECAC Quarterfinals
1978–79	Rensselaer	10–17–1	8–16–1	13th
Rensselaer:		103–94–7	71–74–4
Total:		183–192–7
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

Awards and honors

Award	Year
All-ECAC Hockey First Team	1963–64

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 12, followed by Harvard at 11.

Nevin Donald Harkness was an NCAA head coach of ice hockey and lacrosse at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Cornell University and of ice hockey at Union College. Harkness was also head coach of the Detroit Red Wings and later was the team's general manager. He was inducted into the Lake Placid Hall of Fame in 1993, the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2001 and into the RPI Hockey Ring of Honor in 2007. He is also a member of the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in Eveleth, Minnesota, having been inducted in 1994.

The RPI Engineers women's ice hockey team are a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I women's college ice hockey program that represents Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). The Engineers are a member of the ECAC Hockey (ECACHL) conference. They play at the Houston Field House in Troy, New York.

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 RPI Engineers men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). The Engineers are a member of ECAC Hockey (ECACH). They play at the Houston Field House in Troy, New York.

The Mercyhurst Lakers men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association hockey team that represents Mercyhurst University in Erie, Pennsylvania under Head Coach Rick Gotkin. The team is currently a Division I hockey team playing out of the Mercyhurst Ice Center located on the school campus. The Mercyhurst Lakers started out as a club sport at the school, moving up to Division III, followed by Division II, and now plays Division I in the Atlantic Hockey Association conference. After joining their step up into Division I in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in 1998, the Lakers have won their conference tournament making NCAA tournament appearances in 2001, 2003, and 2005.

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The Penn Quakers men's ice hockey team represents the University of Pennsylvania in the American Collegiate Hockey Association Division II. Penn is a member of the Colonial States College Hockey Conference. The Quakers play at the Class of 1923 Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Garry Kearns is a Canadian retired ice hockey head coach and player who was in charge of the program at Rensselaer for five seasons.

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 1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey team represented Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in intercollegiate college ice hockey during the 1953–54 NCAA men's ice hockey season. The head coach was Ned Harkness and the team co-captains were Frank Chiarelli and Jim Shildneck. The team won the 1954 NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament. The team's leading scorer was Abbie Moore, who finished tied for second in the nation with 68 points.

Frank Chiarelli is a retired Canadian ice hockey player. He captained Rensselaer to its first National Title in 1954 and was the all-time NCAA leader in career goals at the time of his graduation.

The 1984–85 RPI Engineers men's ice hockey team represented the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in college ice hockey. In its 6th year under head coach Mike Addesa the team compiled a 35–2–1 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the sixth time. The Engineers defeated Providence 2–1 to win the championship game at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan.

The Middlebury Panthers men's ice hockey team represents Middlebury College in men’s hockey and has done so since 1922. The Panthers currently play at the Division III and have won the most championships (8) of any D-III program. For a time the team did play along with top-level programs but when men's ice hockey divided into separate tiers in the mid-1960s Middlebury left the upper echelon.

Albert W. "Abbie" Moore is a Canadian retired ice hockey center who was the MOP for the 1954 NCAA Tournament.

Dr. William Sloan is a Canadian retired ice hockey goaltender who previous had the most career wins in NCAA history.

Richard Brooks "Richie" Broadbelt is a Canadian retired ice hockey goaltender who was an All-American for St. Lawrence.

Robert J. "Bob" Brinkworth is a Canadian retired ice hockey Center and coach who was a two-time All-American and ECAC Player of the Year for Rensselaer.

Gerald N. "Jerry" Knightley is a Canadian retired ice hockey Winger and coach who was a two-time All-American for Rensselaer.

References

↑ "Jim Salfi". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 2018-08-24.
↑ "NCAA Tournament". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
↑ "Saint Hockey Record Book 2014-15" (PDF). St. Lawrence Saints. Retrieved August 24, 2018.
↑ "The Missing Ivy". USCHO.com. November 4, 2004. Retrieved August 24, 2018.
↑ "A letter: 115 years of ice hockey at Penn". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved August 24, 2018.

External links

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[1] "Jim Salfi". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 2018-08-24.

[2] "NCAA Tournament". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.

[3] "Saint Hockey Record Book 2014-15" (PDF). St. Lawrence Saints. Retrieved August 24, 2018.

[4] "The Missing Ivy". USCHO.com. November 4, 2004. Retrieved August 24, 2018.

[5] "A letter: 115 years of ice hockey at Penn". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved August 24, 2018.

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v t e Penn Quakers men's ice hockey
Playing venues	West Park Ice Palace (1897–1899, 1900–1901) Philadelphia Arena (1920–1968) Class of 1923 Arena (1972–Present)
Head coaches	George Orton (1919–1922) Frank Winters (1922) Eddie Powers (1922–1924) Normand Shay (1928–1929) Percy Fynan (1929) Herb Gardiner (1929) William Farson (1929–1930) Nick Rukavina (1956–1958) Jack Cleveland (1958–1962) Ron Ryan (1962–1964) Jim Salfi (1964–1972) Bob Crocker (1972–1976) Bob Finke (1976–1978)
Seasons	1896–97 1897–98 1898–99 1900–01 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1928–29 1929–30 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
Conference affiliations	Intercollegiate Hockey Association (1898–1899, 1900–1901) ECAC Hockey (1967–1978) DVCHC (1978–2000) MACHA (2000–2010) GNCHC (2010–2014) CSCHC (2014–Present)
University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA

v t e RPI Engineers men's ice hockey
Formerly the RPI Bachelors
Playing venues	Houston Field House (1949–present)
Head coaches	Leroy Clark (1917–1923) W. J. Cook (1924–1925) Marvin Callan (1925–1931, 1936–1937) Ned Harkness (1949–1963) Rube Bjorkman (1963–1964) Garry Kearns (1964–1969) Leon Abbott (1969–1972) Jim Salfi (1972–1979) Mike Addesa (1979–1989) Buddy Powers (1989–1994) Dan Fridgen (1994–2006) Seth Appert (2006–2017) Dave Smith (2017– )
Seasons	1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1936–37 1937–38 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
Conference affiliations	Tri-State League (1950–1972) ECAC Hockey (1961–present)
Rivalries	Union Dutchmen Clarkson Golden Knights
Culture & lore	Rensselaer Holiday Tournament
All-time leaders	Statistical leaders Frank Chiarelli (265 Points) Frank Chiarelli (155 Goals) Neil Little (58 Wins)
National championships	1954 1985
Frozen Four appearances	1953 1954 1961 1964 1985
NCAA Tournament appearances	1953 1954 1961 1964 1984 1985 1994 1995 2011
Conference Tournament titles	ECAC: 1984 1985 1995
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY

Biographical details
Born	(1942-04-01) April 1, 1942 (age 80) Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
Alma mater	St. Lawrence University
Playing career
1961–1964	St. Lawrence

Position(s)	Defenceman
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1964–1972	Pennsylvania
1972–1979	Rensselaer
1999–2012	Capital District Selects (HC/GM/Owner)

Head coaching record
Overall	183–192–7 (.488) [College]