Paul David Allen Fricker is a Canadian retired ice hockey

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...

who was an All-American for

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 ...

Career

While born in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Fricker played his junior hockey in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, reaching the WHL for 1 game 1979. Because it was just a single game, Fricker was able to retain his college eligibility by not receiving payment for his services. That fall he began attending

in the final recruiting class for

Dan Farrell Daniel Farrell (born 1937) is a former ice hockey player and coach. He played for the Michigan Tech Huskies men's ice hockey team from 1957-1960 and was the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines men's ice hockey team from 1973 to 1980. Farrell l ...

. Fricker played 35 games and helped the team recover from a dismal season the year before by winning 20 games and lifting the Wolverines up to 4th in the conference. Though the team was knocked out in the

first round First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

of the playoffs, Fricker had made enough of a name for himself to be drafted by the

Hartford Whalers The Hartford Whalers were a professional ice hockey team based for most of its existence in Hartford, Connecticut. The club played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 until 1979, and in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1979 to ...

. Entering his second season, Fricker got a new head coach in Wilf Martin, however, the bench boss lasted just 4 games due to ill health and was replaced by John Giordano. The change didn't seem to bother Fricker as he posted very similar marks to what he had the year before and was named an All-American. This time he was able to help the Wolverines win their first round matchup but were helpless against

Michigan Tech Michigan Technological University (Michigan Tech, MTU, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Houghton, Michigan, founded in 1885 as the Michigan Mining School, the first post-secondary institution in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. ...

in the second round and lost 2–9 on aggregate. After the season Fricker passed on his final two years of eligibility and signed a professional contract with the Whalers. He began the next season in Hartford's minor league system, playing the bulk of the year with the

Oklahoma City Stars The Oklahoma City Stars are the athletic teams that represent Oklahoma City University, located in Oklahoma City, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAI ...

before transitioning to the AHL in 1982. Fricker showed promise in his first full season with Binghamton, splitting time in net, but his numbers ballooned in 1984 and he was released by Hartford after the year. Fricker played 4 games the following year before calling it a career and returned home. Fricker became the head coach for the

Delta Flyers The Abbotsford Flyers were a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada. They were a part of the British Columbia Hockey League and played in the Coastal Conference. History In 1983, the Flyers avenged a poor playoffs ...

in 1986 but lasted just a season behind the bench. A few years later he founded 'The Goalie Store' a small business that manufactured custom ice hockey and lacrosse goaltending equipment. On the company website, Fricker would post articles giving tips about how to play the position and he was able to parlay that knowledge into eventually becoming the goaltending coach for the

Seattle Thunderbirds The Seattle Thunderbirds are a major junior ice hockey team based in the city of Kent, Washington, south of Seattle. They are part of the U.S. Division of the Western Conference in the Western Hockey League. They play their games at home in ac ...

. Fricker remained with Seattle for seven years before taking the same job closer to home with the

Vancouver Giants The Vancouver Giants are a major junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL). Inaugurated in 2001–02, the Giants have won one President's Cup (now known as the Ed Chynoweth Cup) in 2006 and one Memorial Cup in 2007 in th ...

. He was let go 11 games into his third season after the team's terrible start. Fricker was only gone from the Giants for a short time and he was brought back to his former post when there was no sign of improvement from the team's two starters. He continues to serve in that capacity as of 2021.

Statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Head coaching record

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fricker, Paul 1960 births Living people AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans Binghamton Whalers players Canadian ice hockey goaltenders Hartford Whalers draft picks Ice hockey people from Ontario Michigan Wolverines men's ice hockey players Oklahoma City Stars players Salt Lake Golden Eagles (IHL) players Sportspeople from Toronto Victoria Cougars (WHL) players