# Union Garnet Chargers men's ice hockey

The Union Garnet Chargers ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I men's college ice hockey program that represents Union College. The Garnet Chargers are a member of ECAC Hockey. They play at the Frank L. Messa Rink at Achilles Center in Schenectady, New York. The Garnet Chargers (known as the Dutchmen at the time) won the 2014 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament by defeating the Minnesota Golden Gophers 7–4.

## Program history

The hockey team was founded in 1904 making it the 7th oldest college program playing in NCAA Division I and provides the school with a long and colorful history in the sport. Men at Union have played hockey in four distinct periods: club hockey from 1904–1911, varsity hockey from 1919–1949 (from 1943–1948 there was a hiatus from play due to WW II), NCAA Division III hockey from 1975–1990 and NCAA Division I hockey from 1991–present.

### Early history 1904–1911

Union's first game, played on February 3, 1904, was a victory over the Union Classical Institute. Three other games were played that inaugural season including a 1–4 loss to rival Rensselaer. Lacking a rink of its own during that inaugural season, all games were played on the opponent's home ice. The first attempt at creating an on-campus outdoor rink was made by students in 1905 when a plow and scaper was hired to form a level area with earthen banks near what is now Memorial Chapel. The club team's record in known games during those early years was 6–7–1. No collegiate games were played in the 1910 or 1911 seasons because Union's players couldn't afford the costs of travel and opponent game guarantee fees. The club team subsequently disbanded bringing a close to the earliest era of hockey at Union.

### Division I era 1991–present

In 2012, the team made the school's first NCAA men's ice hockey championship Frozen Four appearance, losing to Ferris State University.
In the 2013-2014 season, the team won the 2014 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament, the first in school history. The team had an overall 32-6-4 record with 12 consecutive wins leading up to the national title win. Junior Shayne Gostisbehere won the Most Outstanding Player of the 2014 Frozen Four, and signed his NHL entry level contract with the Philadelphia Flyers 3 days after the championship.
In 2017, senior Mike Vecchione was named as a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award. Vecchione finished his collegiate career with a school record of 175 points, along with the leading number of all time assists at 104. He led the D1 league with 21 multiple point games, 17 goals, 4 short handed goals, 4 game winning goals, and a 60.4% faceoff win percentage.
In 2023, the college changed the school's athletic nickname from "Dutchmen" and "Dutchwomen" to "Garnet Chargers" as part of a branding update. Garnet has been the school's official color for 150 years, and the name "chargers" is a reference to "Schenectady’s legacy as a leader in electrical technologies."

## Season-by-season results

Source:

## Championships
### NCAA National Championships

| Year | Champion | Score | Runner-up | City | Arena | Coach | MOP |
| 2014 | Union | 7–4 | Minnesota | Philadelphia, PA | Wells Fargo Center | Rick Bennett | Shayne Gostisbehere |

### ECAC Hockey Tournament championships (Whitelaw Cup)

| Year | Champion | Score | Runner-up | City | Arena | Coach | MOP | Notes |
| 2012 | Union | 3–1 | Harvard | Atlantic City, NJ | Boardwalk Hall | Rick Bennett | Jeremy Welsh | Lost to Ferris State in NCAA Semifinal |
| 2013 | Union | 3–1 | Brown | Atlantic City, NJ | Boardwalk Hall | Rick Bennett | Troy Grosenick | Lost to Quinnipiac in NCAA East Regional |
| 2014 | Union | 4–2 | Colgate | Lake Placid, NY | Herb Brooks Arena | Rick Bennett | Daniel Carr | Defeated Minnesota in NCAA Championship |
Runners-up in 2010

### ECAC Hockey Regular season Championships (Cleary Cup)

| Year | Conference record | Overall record | Coach |
| 2010–11 | 17–3–2 | 26–10–4 | Nate Leaman |
| 2011–12 | 14–4–4 | 26–8–7 | Rick Bennett |
| 2013–14 | 18–3–1 | 32–6–4 | Rick Bennett |
| 2016–17† | 16–4–2 | 25–10–3 | Rick Bennett |
† Shared with Harvard

## Players
### Current roster

As of September 21, 2024.

## Awards & honors

As of April 2017

## Historic records
### Records vs. Current ECAC Hockey Teams

As of the completion of the 2023–24 season
| School | Team | Away Arena | Overall record | Win % | Last Result |
| Brown University | Bears | Meehan Auditorium | 25–28–15 | .478 | 6-0 W |
| Clarkson University | Golden Knights | Cheel Arena | 30–40–5 | .433 | 5-1 W |
| Colgate University | Raiders | Class of 1965 Arena | 33–49–4 | .407 | 3-4 L |
| Cornell University | Big Red | Lynah Rink | 23–49–10 | .341 | 3-2 W |
| Dartmouth College | Big Green | Thompson Arena | 36–31–7 | .534 | 2-4 L |
| Harvard University | Crimson | Bright-Landry Hockey Center | 20–39–6 | .354 | 6-2 W |
| Princeton University | Tigers | Hobey Baker Memorial Rink | 43–27–9 | .601 | 2-2 SOL |
| Quinnipiac University | Bobcats | People's United Center | 17–26–5 | .406 | 2-6 L |
| Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | Engineers | Houster Field House | 47–56–12 | .461 | 5-3 W |
| St. Lawrence University | Saints | Appleton Arena | 36–40–5 | .475 | 2-2 SOW |
| Yale University | Bulldogs | Ingalls Rink | 29–35–7 | .451 | 1-3 L |

### In-season tournaments

As of April 2017
| Event Name | Host City | Season | All-Time Record |
| Badger Showdown | Madison, WI | 2003–04 | 0–2 |
| Capital District Mayor's Cup | Albany, NY | 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17 | 3–2 |
| Brice Alaska Goal Rush | Fairbanks, AK | 2010–11 | 1–1 |
| Catamount Cup | Burlington, VT | 2012–13 | 1–1 |
| Concordia Invitational | Montreal, QE | 1993–94 | 2–0 |
| Dodge Holiday Classic | Providence, RI | 2005–06 | 1–1 |
| Dunkin Donuts Coffee Pot | Providence, RI | 2004–05 | 0–1–1 |
| Frozen Holiday Classic | Bridgeport, CT | 2014–15 | 1–1 |
| Governor's Cup | Albany, NY | 2008–09, 2007–08, 2006–07 | 1–4–1 |
| Ice Breaker Cup | Denver, CO | 1999–00 | 0–2 |
| Icebreaker Invitational | Colorado Springs, CO | 2005–06 | 1–1 |
| J.C. Penney Classic | Orono, ME | 1996–97, 1998–99 | 2–2 |
| Ledyard Bank Classic | Hanover, NH | 2015–16 | 2–0 |
| Mariucci Classic | Minneapolis, MN | 2000–01, 2005–06, 2010–11 | 2–3–1 |
| Omaha Stampede | Omaha, NE | 2008–09 | 1–1 |
| Pete Kelly Cup | Fredericton, NB | 2007–08 | 1–1 |
| Rensselaer Invitational | Troy, NY | 1991–92, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2009–10 | 2–6 |
| Shillelagh tournament | Notre Dame, IN | 2008–09, 2014–15 | 2–2 |
| Sheraton/TD Banknorth Tournament | Burlington, VT | 2006–07 | 1–1 |
| UConn Classic | Storrs, CT | 2009–10 | 1–1 |

## Head coaches
### All-time coaching records

As of completion of the 2023–24 season
| Tenure | Coach | Years | Record | Pct. |
| 2022–Present | Josh Hauge | 2 | 30–37–5 | .451 |
| 2022 | John Ronan | 1$^‡$ | 8–8–1 | .500 |
| 2011–2022 | Rick Bennett | 10$^‡$ | 192–133–45 | .580 |
| 2003–2011 | Nate Leaman | 8 | 138–127–35 | .518 |
| 1998–2003 | Kevin Sneddon | 5 | 50–99–18 | .353 |
| 1996–1998 | Stan Moore | 2 | 24–35–7 | .417 |
| 1988–1996 | Bruce Delventhal | 8 | 89–111–21 | .450 |
| 1978–1988 | Charles Morrison | 10 | 123–147–9 | .457 |
| 1978 | Bob Driscoll | 1$^†$ | 0–13–0 | .000 |
| 1975–1977 | Ned Harkness | 3$^†$ | 45–8–2 | .836 |
| 1936–1939 | Duke Nelson | 3 | 3–11–2 | .250 |
| 1935–1936, 1939–1942, 1947–1949 | Arthur C. Lawrence | 6 | 10–30–2 | .262 |
| 1933–1935 | H. L. Achilles | 2 | 4–7–0 | .364 |
| 1930–1933 | William Harkness | 3 | 4–8–1 | .346 |
| 1925–1930 | H. A. Larabee | 5 | 9–14–3 | .404 |
| 1924–1925 | Henry Gardner | 1 | 1–3–0 | .250 |
| 1919–1924 | Ambrose Clark | 4 | 7–10–0 | .412 |
| 1903–1904, 1905–1911 | No Coach | 7 | 6–7–1 | .464 |
| Totals | 17 coaches | 82 Seasons | 743–808–151 | .481 |
† Bob Driscoll coached the final 13 games of the 1977–78 season after Ned Harkness resigned. ‡ Rick Bennett was suspended on January 19, 2022 and John Ronan coached the final 17 games of the season.

## Garnet Chargers in the NHL

As of July 1, 2024.
| = NHL All-Star team | = NHL All-Star | = NHL All-Star and NHL All-Star team | = Hall of Famers |
| Player | Position | Team(s) | Years | NHL Games | Stanley Cups |
| Steve Baker | Goaltender | NYR | 1979–1983 | 4 | 0 |
| Daniel Carr | Left Wing | MTL, VGK, NSH, WSH | 2015–2023 | 117 | 0 |
| Nick DeSimone | Defenseman | CGY, NJD | 2022–Present | 38 | 0 |
| Spencer Foo | Right Wing | CGY | 2017–2018 | 4 | 0 |
| Mario Giallonardo | Defenseman | COR | 1979–1981 | 23 | 0 |
| Shayne Gostisbehere | Defenseman | PHI, PHO, CAR, DET | 2014–Present | 619 | 0 |
| Collin Graf | Right Wing | SJS | 2023–Present | 7 | 0 |
| Troy Grosenick | Goaltender | SJS, LAK | 2014–2022 | 4 | 0 |
| Josh Jooris | Right Wing | CGY, NYR, ARI, CAR, PIT | 2014–2018 | 213 | 0 |
| Duane Joyce | Defenseman | DAL | 1993–1994 | 3 | 0 |
| Keith Kinkaid | Goaltender | NJD, MTL, NYR, BOS, COL | 2012–2023 | 169 | 0 |
| Mike Vecchione | Center | PHI, WSH | 2016–2022 | 3 | 0 |
| Jeremy Welsh | Defenseman | CAR, VAN, STL | 2011–2016 | 27 | 0 |
* Josh Jooris
* Keith Kinkaid
* Jeremy Welsh
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