# 1977–78 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season

The 1977–78 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season began in October 1977 and concluded with the 1978 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament's championship game on March 25, 1978 at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island. This was the 31st season in which an NCAA ice hockey championship was held and is the 84th year overall where an NCAA school fielded a team.

## Season Outlook
### Pre-season poll

The top teams in the nation voted on by coaches before the start of the season. The poll was compiled by radio station WMPL.
WMPL Poll :
| Rank | Team |
| 1 | Michigan |
| 2 | Wisconsin |
| 3 | Boston University |
| 4 | Colorado College |
| 5 (tie) | Minnesota |
| 5 (tie) | Denver |
| 7 | Michigan Tech |
| 8 | Saint Louis |
| 9 | Bowling Green |
| 10 | Clarkson |

## Regular season
### Season tournaments

| Tournament | Dates | Teams | Champion |
| North Country Thanksgiving Festival | November 24–26 | 4 | Clarkson |
| Blue–Green Invitational | December 16–17 | 4 | Dartmouth |
| Old Colony Invitational | December 19–21 | 4 | Saint Louis |
| Great Lakes Invitational | December 28–29 | 4 | Michigan Tech |
| Broadmoor Holiday Tournament | December 28–30 | 4 | Denver |
| Rensselaer Holiday Tournament | December 28–30 | 4 | Rensselaer |
| Cornell Holiday Festival | December 29–30 | 4 | Cornell |
| Syracuse Invitational | December 29–30 | 4 | Clarkson |
| Down East Classic | January 4–5 | 4 | Bowdoin |
| Beanpot | February 6, March 1 | 4 | Boston University |

### Standings

1977–78 Big Ten standingsvte :
| | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall |
| | GP | W | L | T | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| Wisconsin† | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 59 | 44 | 43 | 28 | 12 | 3 | 214 | 149 |
| Michigan | 12 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 13 | 65 | 59 | 36 | 15 | 20 | 1 | 169 | 192 |
| Minnesota | 12 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 12 | 48 | 41 | 38 | 22 | 14 | 2 | 171 | 150 |
| Michigan State | 12 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 42 | 70 | 36 | 7 | 27 | 2 | 130 | 201 |
| † indicates conference regular season champion |||||||||||||||
1977–78 Central Collegiate Hockey Association standingsvte :
| | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall |
| | GP | W | L | T | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| Bowling Green†* | 18 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 30 | 96 | 42 | 39 | 31 | 8 | 0 | 196 | 108 |
| Saint Louis | 20 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 20 | 73 | 71 | 40 | 21 | 17 | 2 | 134 | 99 |
| Northern Michigan | 20 | 8 | 10 | 2 | 18 | 77 | 84 | 34 | 19 | 13 | 2 | 150 | 129 |
| Ohio State | 20 | 9 | 11 | 0 | 18 | 73 | 89 | 35 | 16 | 18 | 1 | 144 | 154 |
| Lake Superior State | 18 | 7 | 10 | 1 | 15 | 73 | 101 | 32 | 18 | 13 | 1 | 144 | 148 |
| Western Michigan | 20 | 7 | 12 | 1 | 15 | 83 | 88 | 33 | 15 | 17 | 1 | 175 | 140 |
| Championship: Bowling Green † indicates conference regular season champion * indicates conference tournament champion |||||||||||||||
1977–78 ECAC Hockey standingsvte :
| | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall |
| | GP | W | L | T | Pct. | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| Boston University† | 22 | 21 | 1 | 0 | .955 | 135 | 85 | 32 | 30 | 2 | 0 | 199 | 126 |
| Cornell | 22 | 16 | 5 | 1 | .750 | 161 | 79 | 27 | 20 | 6 | 1 | 195 | 100 |
| Clarkson | 23 | 16 | 7 | 0 | .696 | 139 | 109 | 30 | 19 | 11 | 0 | 174 | 145 |
| Rensselaer | 21 | 13 | 8 | 0 | .619 | 100 | 83 | 29 | 19 | 9 | 1 | 162 | 117 |
| Boston College* | 23 | 14 | 9 | 0 | .609 | 117 | 116 | 34 | 24 | 10 | 0 | 186 | 147 |
| Brown | 23 | 13 | 9 | 1 | .587 | 101 | 78 | 29 | 14 | 14 | 1 | 117 | 102 |
| Providence | 23 | 12 | 9 | 2 | .565 | 116 | 95 | 34 | 17 | 15 | 2 | 172 | 146 |
| New Hampshire | 25 | 14 | 11 | 0 | .560 | 154 | 124 | 30 | 18 | 12 | 0 | 197 | 150 |
| Yale | 26 | 12 | 13 | 1 | .481 | 92 | 114 | 26 | 12 | 13 | 1 | 92 | 114 |
| Harvard | 23 | 10 | 13 | 0 | .435 | 87 | 112 | 26 | 12 | 14 | 0 | 99 | 122 |
| Dartmouth | 23 | 9 | 14 | 0 | .391 | 97 | 114 | 26 | 11 | 15 | 0 | 107 | 129 |
| Vermont | 23 | 9 | 14 | 0 | .391 | 94 | 108 | 31 | 15 | 16 | 0 | 139 | 137 |
| St. Lawrence | 22 | 8 | 14 | 0 | .364 | 91 | 124 | 30 | 12 | 18 | 0 | 124 | 152 |
| Princeton | 21 | 7 | 13 | 1 | .357 | 83 | 89 | 25 | 9 | 14 | 2 | 102 | 102 |
| Northeastern | 24 | 7 | 16 | 1 | .313 | 131 | 128 | 28 | 10 | 17 | 1 | 155 | 142 |
| Pennsylvania | 21 | 5 | 14 | 2 | .286 | 82 | 123 | 26 | 7 | 17 | 2 | 98 | 145 |
| Colgate | 25 | 4 | 20 | 1 | .180 | 81 | 180 | 28 | 5 | 22 | 1 | 91 | 187 |
| Championship: Boston College † indicates conference regular season champion * indicates conference tournament champion |||||||||||||||
1977–78 NCAA Division I Independent ice hockey standingsvte :
| | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall |
| | GP | W | L | T | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| Air Force | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | 28 | 9 | 17 | 0 | 121 | 144 |
1977–78 Western Collegiate Hockey Association standingsvte :
| | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall |
| | GP | W | L | T | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| Denver† | 32 | 27 | 5 | 0 | 54 | 192 | 112 | 40 | 33 | 6 | 1 | 235 | 140 |
| Wisconsin* | 32 | 21 | 9 | 2 | 44 | 127 | 113 | 43 | 28 | 12 | 3 | 214 | 149 |
| Michigan Tech | 32 | 21 | 11 | 0 | 42 | 150 | 123 | 40 | 25 | 14 | 1 | 184 | 157 |
| Minnesota | 32 | 18 | 13 | 1 | 37 | 143 | 134 | 38 | 22 | 14 | 2 | 171 | 150 |
| Colorado College* | 32 | 13 | 19 | 0 | 26 | 162 | 172 | 41 | 18 | 22 | 1 | 212 | 218 |
| North Dakota | 32 | 13 | 19 | 0 | 26 | 146 | 167 | 38 | 15 | 22 | 1 | 172 | 192 |
| Minnesota-Duluth | 32 | 12 | 19 | 1 | 25 | 135 | 155 | 37 | 14 | 22 | 1 | 155 | 182 |
| Notre Dame | 32 | 12 | 19 | 1 | 25 | 117 | 147 | 38 | 12 | 24 | 2 | 137 | 186 |
| Michigan | 32 | 12 | 19 | 1 | 25 | 149 | 175 | 36 | 15 | 20 | 1 | 169 | 192 |
| Michigan State | 32 | 7 | 23 | 2 | 16 | 119 | 182 | 36 | 7 | 27 | 2 | 130 | 201 |
| Championship: Wisconsin, Colorado College † indicates conference regular season champion * indicates conference tournament champion |||||||||||||||

### Final regular season polls

The final top 10 teams as ranked by coaches (WMPL) before the conference tournament finals.
WMPL Coaches Poll :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | Denver |
| 2 | Boston University |
| 3 | Wisconsin |
| 4 | Michigan Tech |
| 5 | Cornell |
| 6 | Bowling Green State |
| 7 | Minnesota |
| 8 | Clarkson |
| 9 | Rensselaer |
| 10 | Boston College |

## 1978 NCAA Tournament

| First Round March 18–19 | First Round March 18–19 | First Round March 18–19 | Semifinals March 23–24 | Semifinals March 23–24 | Semifinals March 23–24 | National Championship March 25 | National Championship March 25 | National Championship March 25 |
| | | | E1 | Boston College | 6 | | | |
| W2 | Colorado College | 3 | A1 | Bowling Green | 2 | | | |
| A1 | Bowling Green | 5 | | | | E1 | Boston College | 3 |
| | | | | | | A2 | Boston University | 5 |
| | | | W1 | Wisconsin | 2 |
| E2 | Providence | 3 | A2 | Boston University | 5 |
| A2 | Boston University | 5 | | | | Third Place Game | Third Place Game | Third Place Game |
| | | | | | | W1 | Wisconsin | 3 |
| | | | | | | A1 | Bowling Green | 4 |
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)

## Player stats
### Scoring leaders

The following players led the league in points at the conclusion of the season.
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Class | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Mike Eaves | Senior | Wisconsin | 43 | 31 | 58 | 89 | 16 |
| Mark Johnson | Sophomore | Wisconsin | 42 | 48 | 38 | 86 | 24 |
| Lance Nethery | Junior | Cornell | 26 | 23 | 60 | 83 | 12 |
| Doug Berry | Junior | Denver | 40 | 36 | 46 | 82 | 36 |
| Greg Whyte | Freshman | Colorado College | 41 | 28 | 54 | 82 | 42 |
| Dave Delich | Junior | Colorado College | 41 | 27 | 53 | 80 | 20 |
| Ralph Cox | Junior | New Hampshire | 30 | 31 | 39 | 70 | 44 |
| Perry Schnarr | Sophomore | Denver | 37 | 35 | 33 | 68 | 35 |
| Joe Mullen | Junior | Boston College | 34 | 34 | 34 | 68 | 12 |
| Jim Warner | Senior | Colorado College | 38 | 27 | 41 | 68 | 50 |

### Leading goaltenders

The following goaltenders led the league in goals against average at the end of the regular season while playing at least 33% of their team's total minutes.
GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime/shootout losses; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average
| Player | Class | Team | GP | Min | W | L | OT | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
| Brian Stankiewicz | Freshman | Bowling Green | 30 | 1718 | - | - | - | 74 | 2 | .907 | 2.58 |
| Ernie Glanville | Senior | Denver | 17 | 1084 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 45 | 2 | .908 | 2.67 |
| Steve Napier | Sophomore | Cornell | 16 | - | - | - | - | - | - | .899 | 3.19 |
| Steve Weeks | Sophomore | Northern Michigan | 19 | 1015 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 56 | 1 | .901 | 3.31 |
| Mark Holden | Sophomore | Brown | 10 | 590 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 33 | 1 | - | 3.36 |
| Julian Baretta | Junior | Wisconsin | 33 | 1976 | 20 | 10 | 3 | 114 | 0 | .893 | 3.46 |
| John Rockwell | Junior | Michigan Tech | 21 | 1235 | - | - | - | 72 | 1 | .903 | 3.49 |
| Brian O'Connell | Senior | Saint Louis | 39 | 2364 | - | - | - | 139 | 2 | - | 3.53 |
| Jim Craig | Sophomore | Boston University | 16 | 967 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 60 | 0 | - | 3.72 |
| Paul Skidmore | Sophomore | Boston College | 25 | 1417 | 18 | 7 | 0 | 88 | 2 | - | 3.73 |

## 1978 NHL Amateur Draft

| Round | Pick | Player | College | Conference | NHL team |
| 2 | 24 | Steve Christoff | Minnesota | WCHA | Minnesota North Stars |
| 2 | 25 | Mike Meeker | Wisconsin | WCHA | Pittsburgh Penguins |
| 3 | 37 | Gord Salt | Michigan Tech | WCHA | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 3 | 41 | Paul Messier | Denver | WCHA | Colorado Rockies |
| 3 | 44 | Dean Turner | Michigan | WCHA | New York Rangers |
| 3 | 49 | Rob McClanahan | Minnesota | WCHA | Buffalo Sabres |
| 4 | 54 | Curt Giles | Minnesota–Duluth | WCHA | Minnesota North Stars |
| 4 | 59 | Dave Silk | Boston University | ECAC Hockey | New York Rangers |
| 5 | 70 | Roy Kerling | Cornell | ECAC Hockey | Minnesota North Stars |
| 5 | 84 | Greg Hay | Michigan Tech | WCHA | New York Islanders |
| 5 | 85 | Daryl MacLeod | Boston University | ECAC Hockey | Boston Bruins |
| 6 | 87 | Bob Bergloff | Minnesota | WCHA | Minnesota North Stars |
| 6 | 88 | Vince Magnan | Denver | WCHA | Washington Capitals |
| 6 | 91 | John Hynes | Harvard | ECAC Hockey | Colorado Rockies |
| 6 | 93 | Tom Laidlaw | Northern Michigan | CCHA | New York Rangers |
| 6 | 96 | Dave Feamster | Colorado College | WCHA | Chicago Blackhawks |
| 6 | 97 | Greg Meredith | Notre Dame | WCHA | Atlanta Flames |
| 6 | 100 | Mark Taylor | North Dakota | WCHA | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 6 | 102 | Jeff Brubaker $^‡$ | Michigan State | WCHA | Boston Bruins |
| 7 | 108 | Andy Clark | Lake Superior State | CCHA | Colorado Rockies |
| 7 | 111 | Don Waddell | Northern Michigan | CCHA | Los Angeles Kings |
| 7 | 117 | Mike Ewanouski | Boston College | ECAC Hockey | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 7 | 119 | Murray Skinner | Lake Superior State | CCHA | Boston Bruins |
| 7 | 120 | Jim Lawson | Brown | ECAC Hockey | Montreal Canadiens |
| 8 | 121 | Mike Cotter | Bowling Green | CCHA | Minnesota North Stars |
| 8 | 124 | Steve O'Neill | Providence | ECAC Hockey | Vancouver Canucks |
| 8 | 125 | John Olver | Michigan | WCHA | Colorado Rockies |
| 8 | 127 | Greg Kostenko | Ohio State | CCHA | New York Rangers |
| 8 | 130 | Sandy Ross | Colgate | ECAC Hockey | Chicago Black Hawks |
| 8 | 133 | Eric Strobel | Minnesota | WCHA | Buffalo Sabres |
| 8 | 136 | Bobby Hehir | Boston College | ECAC Hockey | Boston Bruins |
| 8 | 137 | Larry Landon | Rensselaer | ECAC Hockey | Montreal Canadiens |
| 9 | 140 | Tony Meagher | Boston University | ECAC Hockey | St. Louis Blues |
| 9 | 141 | Charlie Antetomaso | Boston College | ECAC Hockey | Vancouver Canucks |
| 9 | 145 | Rick Scully | Brown | ECAC Hockey | Los Angeles Kings |
| 9 | 148 | Doug Todd | Michigan | WCHA | Atlanta Flames |
| 9 | 149 | Mike Waghorne | New Hampshire | ECAC Hockey | Toronto Maple Leafs |
| 9 | 151 | Greg Francis | St. Lawrence | ECAC Hockey | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 9 | 152 | Paul Joswiak | Minnesota | WCHA | New York Islanders |
| 9 | 154 | Kevin Constantine | Rensselaer | ECAC Hockey | Montreal Canadiens |
| 10 | 155 | Mike Seide $^†$ | Northern Michigan | CCHA | Minnesota North Stars |
| 10 | 159 | Jeff Jensen | Lake Superior State | CCHA | Colorado Rockies |
| 10 | 161 | Mark Rodrigues | Yale | ECAC Hockey | New York Rangers |
| 10 | 164 | Glenn Van | Colorado College | WCHA | Chicago Blackhawks |
| 10 | 168 | Don Lucia | Notre Dame | WCHA | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 10 | 169 | Scott Cameron | Notre Dame | WCHA | New York Islanders |
| 10 | 170 | Dan Lerg | Michigan | WCHA | St. Louis Blues |
| 11 | 176 | Steve Weeks | Northern Michigan | CCHA | New York Rangers |
| 11 | 177 | Jim Armstrong | Clarkson | ECAC Hockey | Los Angeles Kings |
| 11 | 182 | Mark Berge | North Dakota | WCHA | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 11 | 183 | Ken Moore | Clarkson | ECAC Hockey | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 11 | 185 | John Sullivan | Providence | ECAC Hockey | St. Louis Blues |
| 12 | 187 | Paul Hogan $^‡$ | Denver | WCHA | Washington Capitals |
| 12 | 189 | Steve Barger | Boston College | ECAC Hockey | Washington Capitals |
| 12 | 191 | Don Boyd | Rensselaer | ECAC Hockey | St. Louis Blues |
| 12 | 195 | Jim Olson $^†$ | Western Michigan | CCHA | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 12 | 197 | Paul Stasiuk | Providence | ECAC Hockey | St. Louis Blues |
| 13 | 202 | Rod Pacholzuk | Michigan | WCHA | Washington Capitals |
| 13 | 206 | Chris McLaughlin | Dartmouth | ECAC Hockey | New York Rangers |
| 13 | 212 | Jeff Mars | Michigan | WCHA | Montreal Canadiens |
| 14 | 214 | John Cochrane | Harvard | ECAC Hockey | St. Louis Blues |
| 14 | 216 | Joe Casey | Boston College | ECAC Hockey | St. Louis Blues |
| 14 | 217 | Todd Johnson | Boston University | ECAC Hockey | New York Rangers |
| 14 | 218 | Jim Farrell | Princeton | ECAC Hockey | St. Louis Blues |
| 14 | 220 | Frank Johnson | Providence | ECAC Hockey | St. Louis Blues |
| 14 | 221 | Blair Wheeler | Yale | ECAC Hockey | St. Louis Blues |
| 14 | 222 | Greg Tignanelli | Northern Michigan | CCHA | Montreal Canadiens |
| 15 | 225 | George Goulakos | St. Lawrence | ECAC Hockey | Montreal Canadiens |
| 16 | 226 | Brian Crawley | St. Lawrence | ECAC Hockey | Detroit Red Wings |
| 16 | 227 | Ken Moodie | Colgate | ECAC Hockey | Montreal Canadiens |
| 17 | 229 | Serge Leblanc | Vermont | ECAC Hockey | Montreal Canadiens |
| 19 | 231 | Chris Nilan | Northeastern | ECAC Hockey | Montreal Canadiens |
| 20 | 232 | Rick Wilson | St. Lawrence | ECAC Hockey | Montreal Canadiens |
† incoming freshman $^{‡HoganandBrubakerhadalreadyleftschoolpriortothisseason.}$