James Haas is a Canadian retired ice hockey

defenseman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the la ...

and

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

who won consecutive

National Championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

with

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

in the 1950s.

Career

After playing Junior hockey for

Moose Jaw Moose Jaw is the fourth largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. Lying on the Moose Jaw River in the south-central part of the province, it is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Regina. Residents of Moose Jaw are known as Moose Javians ...

and Prince Albert, Haas was recruited to Michigan and joined one of the premier powers of college hockey. While Haas played for the freshman team, the varsity squad won the 1951 Championship. Haas joined the following year and performed brilliantly, helping Michigan hold opponents to just 66 goals in 24 games, by far the lowest total of any team in the MCHL. He was named to the All- MCHL

First Team First team may refer to: Sports * First team (association football), the colloquial name given to the most senior team fielded by a football club * The First Team, the first players known to have played the sport of basketball * First Team All-A ...

and was an AHCA Second Team All-American. in his first tournament Haas collected two assists and made the All-Tournament First Team as Michigan won its second consecutive championship. The following year Haas didn't perform as well on the defensive end and, as a consequence, Michigan's defense wasn't as impenetrable, but the Wolverines were still able to return to the tournament. This time it was Michigan's offense that carried them through and after demolishing

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

14–2 in the semifinal, Hass got in on the scoring in the championship match against

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, scoring two goals and an assist in the Wolverines' 7–3 win, securing a third consecutive championship. For his senior season, Haas was named

team captain In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...

and was once more a star during the season. While Michigan finished far back of Minnesota in the standings, Haas was still recognized by making appearances on the first team for both his conference and the nation. Haas led Michigan back to the tournament, seeking a fourth straight championship, but in the first game the Wolverines were stunned by upstart Rensselaer who skated rings around the larger Wolverines and knocked the maize and blue out of contention. After trashing their hotel room that night, Michigan took their frustration out on

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

in the consolation game, winning 7–2 and finishing in third place. Haas graduated with a degree in

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

in 1954 and then moved to

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

where he coached bantam hockey for several years. He was inducted into the Michigan Dekers Hall of Fame in 1977.

Statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Haas, Jim 1933 births Canadian ice hockey defencemen Canadian ice hockey forwards Ice hockey people from Saskatchewan People from Nipawin, Saskatchewan Michigan Wolverines men's ice hockey players NCAA men's ice hockey national champions AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans Living people