: ''For information on all Niagara University sports, see

Niagara Purple Eagles The Niagara Purple Eagles are athletics teams that represent Niagara University in college sports. Part of the NCAA's Division I, the Purple Eagles field 18 varsity level teams. The Purple Eagles are members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Confere ...

'' The Niagara Purple Eagles men's ice hockey team is a

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athlete, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic sports, ...

(NCAA) Division I

college ice hockey College ice hockey is played principally in the United States and Canada, though leagues exist outside North America. In the United States, competitive "college hockey" refers to ice hockey played between colleges and universities within the g ...

program that represents

Niagara University Niagara University (NU) is a private Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition in Lewiston in Niagara County, New York. It is run by the Congregation of the Mission and has 3,300 undergraduate students in 50 academic programs. Appro ...

. The Purple Eagles are a member of

Atlantic Hockey The Atlantic Hockey Association (AHA) is an NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey conference which operates primarily in the northeastern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as an ice hockey-only conference. Unlike several other ...

. They play at the Dwyer Arena in

Lewiston, New York Lewiston is a town in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 15,944 at the 2020 census. The town and its contained village are named after Morgan Lewis, a governor of New York. The Town of Lewiston is on the western borde ...

History

After several years of playing at the club level, the team turned

varsity Varsity may refer to: *University, an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in various academic disciplines Places *Varsity, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Calgary, Alberta, Canada * Varsity Lakes ...

in the 1996–97 season, which they played as independent. In 1999 they became charter members of the

College Hockey America College Hockey America (CHA) is a college ice hockey conference in the United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. The conference is made up of five women’s teams, with two in Pennsylvania; two in New Y ...

, joining two other independent teams (

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ar ...

and

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

) and three former Division II teams ( Alabama–Huntsville, Bemidji State and Findlay). Niagara went undefeated in conference play that season, 1999–00, winning the conference tournament and gaining an at-large invitation to the NCAA Tournament, as the conference did not gain an automatic bid until the 2003 tournament. Starting goaltender

Greg Gardner Gregory Gardner (born November 21, 1975) is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former goaltender who is the NCAA Division I record-holder for shutouts in a season (as of 2021). He was the first ever player signed by the Columbus Blue Jackets. Care ...

set a single-season NCAA record for shutouts with 12 as Niagara posted its first (and only as of 2019) 30-win campaign. The Purple Eagles upset the

University of New Hampshire The University of New Hampshire (UNH) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Durham, New Hampshire. It was founded and incorporated in 1866 as a land grant college in Hanover in connection with Dartmouth College, m ...

to advance to the Elite Eight, where they lost to

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, S ...

. North Dakota went on to win that national championship. Niagara also won the College Hockey America Championship in 2004 and 2008, appearing in the NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship again those years. In

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

they lost against

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 classifi ...

and in

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

against

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. On January 29, 2009, Niagara University announced that the team was moving to

beginning in the 2010-11 season. On October 14, 2010, it was announced that

Jay McKee Jay McKee (born September 8, 1977) is a Canadian coach and former professional ice hockey defenceman. He last played for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League, and was previously with the Buffalo Sabres and the St. Louis Blu ...

would serve as a volunteer assistant coach for Niagara Purple Eagles men's ice hockey, while not ruling out a return to the NHL. On December 14, 2013 the Purple Eagles faced off against the RIT Tigers in an outdoor hockey game known as Frozen Frontier tying 2-2.

Season-by-season results

Source:

Head coaches

As of the completion of 2021–22 season

NCAA Tournament appearances

Statistical leaders

Source:

Career points leaders

Career goaltending leaders

''GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% =

Save percentage Save percentage (often known by such symbols as SV%, SVS%, SVP, PCT) is a statistic in various goal-scoring sports that track saves as a statistic. In ice hockey and lacrosse, it is a statistic that represents the percentage of shots on goal ...

; GAA =

Goals against average Goals against average (GAA) also known as "average goals against" or "AGA" is a statistic used in field hockey, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, and water polo that is the mean of goals allowed per game by a goaltender or goalkeeper (depending on ...

'' minimum 30 games played Statistics current through the start of the 2021–22 season.

Roster

As of June 30, 2022.

Awards and honors

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...

All-Americans

AHCA Second Team All-Americans *2010–11:

Paul Zanette Paul Zanette (born April 8, 1988) is a Canadian- Italian professional ice hockey player. He is currently an unrestricted free agent who most recently played for the Indy Fuel of the ECHL. In 2011, while playing for the Niagara University ...

, F

CHA

Individual Awards

Player of the Year Several sports leagues honour their best player with an award called Player of the Year (POY) . In the United States, this type of award is usually called a Most Valuable Player award. Association football In association football, this award is he ...

: 1999 * Joe Tallari: 2003 * Barret Ehgoetz: 2004 *

Jeff Van Nynatten Jeff is a masculine name, often a short form (hypocorism) of the English given name Jefferson or Jeffrey, which comes from a medieval variant of Geoffrey. Music * DJ Jazzy Jeff, American DJ/turntablist record producer Jeffrey Allen Townes ...

: 2006 * Sean Bentivoglio: 2007 * Juliano Pagliero: 2009 Rookie of the Year * Ted Cook: 2006 *

Les Reaney Les Reaney (born July 8, 1984) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. Career Reaney began his career in the ECHL for the Stockton Thunder and the Dayton Bombers before joining the Rapid City Rush of the Central Hockey League. ...

: 2006 *

Chris Moran Air Chief Marshal Sir Christopher Hugh Moran, (28 April 1956 – 26 May 2010) was a fast jet pilot and later a senior commander in the Royal Air Force. He was Commander-in-Chief of Air Command at the time of his unexpected death. Early and fam ...

: 2007 Most Valuable Player in Tournament * Kyle Martin: 2000 *

: 2004 * Ted Cook: 2008

Coach of the Year Many sports leagues, sportswriting associations, and other organizations confer "Coach of the Year" awards. In some sports — including baseball and association football — the award is called the "Manager of the Year" award. Some of the ...

* Blaise MacDonald: 2000 *

Dave Burkholder Dave Burkholder (born 1962) is a Canadian college ice hockey coach and former college player. He coached the Niagara University program from 2001 to 2017, taking over from Blaise MacDonald, a former teammate of his with the RIT Tigers. Burkhol ...

: 2006, 2007 Three-Star Player of the Year * Ted Cook: 2007 Student-Athlete of the Year *

Vince Rocco Vincent Rocco (born June 26, 1987) is a Canadian-born Italian professional ice hockey player who is currently playing for IF Troja/Ljungby in the Swedish second tier HockeyAllsvenskan ice hockey league, previously playing for Alleghe Hockey in th ...

: 2009

All-Conference Teams

First Team All-CHA *1999–00:

, G;

Chris MacKenzie Christopher Neil Mackenzie (born 14 May 1972) is an English former footballer. He was a goalkeeper and most recently played for Corby Town in the Conference North. Career Mackenzie has also played for Hereford United and even scored a goa ...

, D; Kyle Martin, F; Mike Isherwood, F *2002–03: Joe Tallari, F *2003–04:

, G; Barret Ehgoetz, F *2004–05: Barret Ehgoetz, F *2005–06: Sean Bentivoglio, F *2006–07: Pat Oliveto, D; Sean Bentivoglio, F; Ted Cook, F *2007–08: Juliano Pagliero, G; Ryan Annesley, D;

, F *2008–09: Juliano Pagliero, G *2009–10:

, F Second Team All-CHA *1999–00:

Mikko Sivonen Mikko is a Finnish masculine given name and equivalent of the English name Michael, having been borrowed into the Finnish language. The given name Mikko is shared by the following notable people: * Mikko Alatalo, Finnish musician and politician ...

, F *2000–01: Bernie Sigrist, F *2001–02: Scott Crawford, D *2002–03: Barret Ehgoetz, F *2003–04: Andrew Lackner, D; Joe Tallari, F *2004–05: Ryan Gale, F *2005–06:

, G; Ted Cook, F;

, F *2006–07: Juliano Pagliero, G;

, F *2007–08: Tyler Gotto, D; Matt Caruana, F *2008–09: Tyler Gotto, D;

, F; Egor Mironov, F *2009–10: Tyler Gotto, D;

Ryan Olidis Ryan may refer to: People and fictional characters *Ryan (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Ryan (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) Places Australia * Division of Ryan, an elect ...

, F All-CHA Rookie Team *2002–03: Brian Hartman, D; Jason Williamson, F *2003–04: Pat Oliveto, F *2005–06: Ted Cook, F;

, F *2006–07: Tyler Gotto, D;

, F *2007–08: Adam Avramenko, G *2008–09: Dan Baco, D *2009–10: Jason Beattie, F

Atlantic Hockey The Atlantic Hockey Association (AHA) is an NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey conference which operates primarily in the northeastern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as an ice hockey-only conference. Unlike several other ...

Individual Awards

: 2011 * Carsen Chubak: 2013 Rookie of the Year * Ludwig Stenlund: 2019 Regular Season Goaltending Award *

Chris Noonan Chris Noonan (born 14 November 1952) is an Australian filmmaker and actor. He is best known for the family film '' Babe'' (1995), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenpla ...

: 2012 Regular Season Scoring Trophy *

: 2011

: 2013 Most Valuable Player in Tournament *Scott Champagne: 2005

All-Conference Teams

First Team All-Atlantic Hockey *2010–11: Bryan Haczyk, F;

, F *2012–13: Carsen Chubak, G; Giancarlo Iuorio, F Second Team All-Atlantic Hockey *2011–12:

, G *2012–13:

Dan Weiss Daniel or Dan Weiss may refer to: * D. B. Weiss (born 1971), American television writer, director, and producer * Daniel Weiss (art historian) (fl. 1979), president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art * Daniel Weiss (figure skater) (born 1968), Germ ...

, D Third Team All-Atlantic Hockey *2010–11: Ryan Annesley, D *2012–13: Kevin Ryan, D *2013–14: Kevin Ryan, D *2017–18: Derian Plouffe, F *2018–19: Noah Delmas, D; Ludwig Stenlund, F *2019–20:

Jack Billings Jack Billings (born 18 August 1995) is an Australian rules footballer who plays for St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Billings played TAC Cup with Oakleigh Chargers and played for Vic Metro in Under 18 Championsh ...

, F Atlantic Hockey All-Rookie Team *2010–11: Ryan Rashid, F *2013–14:

Vinny Muto Vinny or Vinnie is a masculine given name, usually a shortened version of Vincent, Vincenzo, or Vicente (disambiguation), Vicente, which may refer to: Vincents * Vinnie Anderson (born 1979), New Zealand rugby league footballer * Vinny Appice (bor ...

, D *2014–15: Keegan Harper, D *2018–19: Ludwig Stenlund, D *2019–20: Chad Veltri, G *2020–21: Josef Mysak, D *2021–22: Shane Ott, F

Niagara Purple Eagles Hall of Fame

The following is a list of people associated with the men's ice hockey program who were elected into the Niagara Purple Eagles Hall of Fame (induction date in parenthesis). *

(2006) * Peter DeSantis (2007) * Mile Isherwood (2007) * Joe Tallari (2012) * Barret Ehgoetz (2013) * 1999-2000 Men's Team (2016)

Purple Eagles in the NHL

As of July 1, 2022. Source:

References

External links

Niagara Purple Eagles men's ice hockey
{{Atlantic Hockey Ice hockey teams in New York (state)

History

Season-by-season results

Head coaches

NCAA Tournament appearances

Statistical leaders

Career points leaders

Career goaltending leaders

Roster

Awards and honors

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...

All-Americans

CHA

Individual Awards

All-Conference Teams

Atlantic Hockey The Atlantic Hockey Association (AHA) is an NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey conference which operates primarily in the northeastern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as an ice hockey-only conference. Unlike several other ...

Individual Awards

All-Conference Teams

Niagara Purple Eagles Hall of Fame

Purple Eagles in the NHL

See also

References

External links