Wayne Wilson ( coach ) < hr > " For other people named Wayne Wilson , please see Wayne Wilson . " < hr > Wayne Wilson ( born 28 January 1963 ) is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former player . Wilson grew up in Montreal but his family moved to Guelph , Ontario when he was sixteen . A defenceman , he played junior hockey for the Guelph Platers in the Ontario Hockey Association , then went on to college at Bowling Green State University in Ohio . He played four years ( 1980 – 1984 ) for the NCAA Division I Bowling Green Falcons , serving as captain in his senior year and leading the team to the 1984 national championship . He graduated with a degree in health , physical education , and recreation , then went on to get his master ' s degree in education from Bowling Green . While a grad student , he helped out as a part - time coach for the hockey team . After graduating with his masters , he spent one year as an assistant at the University of New Hampshire under coach Bob Kullen , but Kullen fell ill and that left his job in jeopardy . Seeking stability , he accepted a position as an assistant coach at his alma mater in 1988 , a position he held through the 1998 – 99 school year . In 1999 , after five years of seeking a head - coaching position , he was hired to be head coach at Division III Rochester Institute of Technology . He led the RIT Tigers to a nearly - undefeated season in 2000 – 01 ; their only loss was on home ice in the 2001 national championship game . That year , he won the Edward Jeremiah Award for the top coach in Division III men ' s hockey . In his first six years at RIT , he compiled a 116 – 31 – 12 record ( . 767 winning percentage ) , with four ECAC West regular - season championships , three ECAC West tournament titles , and three NCAA tournament appearances . However , those all came in his first years at RIT ; in 2003 , the Tigers missed the D - III national tournament for the first time since 1995 , and they would never return . In late 2004 , despite a couple of " down " years for the program ( including " only " a 13 – 7 – 5 record in 2003 – 04 ) , RIT President Albert J . Simone announced that RIT would move their hockey program up to the Division I level , retaining Wilson as head coach . RIT would join Atlantic Hockey starting in the 2006 – 07 season . The rest of the 2004 – 05 campaign was rough , and the Tigers finished with their worst record of Wilson ' s tenure to date , including a painful loss to arch - rival Elmira College in which the Tigers squandered a late two - goal lead by allowing a pair of short - handed goals in the last three minutes of regulation . The Tigers ' first season as a Division I program , in which they played as an independent was even harder , although the highlight was a home win over the St . Lawrence Saints ( ranked # 18 in the nation at the time ) . The Tigers won only nine games that season , mostly against future Atlantic Hockey conference opponents . Since joining Atlantic Hockey in 2006 , though , success has been the Tigers ' hallmark . They have won three regular - season conference championships in four years , and in 2010 they won their first conference tournament . That granted them the conference ' s autobid into the national tournament , where they stunned Denver and New Hampshire to win the East Regional and advance to the Frozen Four . In 2010 , in recognition of reaching the Frozen Four , Wilson won the Spencer Penrose Award , for the top coach in Division I men ' s ice hockey . He became the first coach to win both the Spencer Penrose Award and the Edward Jeremiah Award . He also signed a five - year contract that year , keeping him at RIT until at least the 2014 - 15 season . Wilson and his wife Lynn live in Pittsford , New York . Their daughter Stephanie attends Bowling Green State University , and their son Stuart is playing junior hockey .