Maine Black Bears The Maine Black Bears are a Men ' s Division I and Women ' s Division I team in Hockey East . Men ' s program . The University of Maine , then known as the University of Maine at Orono , officially developed an NCAA sanctioned men ' s ice hockey program in 1977 . Creation of this program occurred simultaneously with the construction of the Harold Alfond Sports Arena ( See Alfond Arena ) , the facility that is still used for home games today . This was not , however , the first attempt at birthing a permanent hockey program in Orono . UMaine played 2 seasons of recognized college hockey in 1922 and 1923 totalling 17 games , and primarily playing other Maine colleges such as Bowdoin , Colby and Bates . This program did not stick , and it would be over 5 decades before organized hockey would become a staple at the state ' s Flagship University . Upon foundation in 1977 , the program was coached by Jack Semler ( University of Vermont ' 68 ) . Maine enjoyed modest success under Semler boasting winning records in 3 of their first 4 regular seasons . The Black Bears competed in The Eastern College Athletic Conference ( ECAC ) during their first 7 years of existence , all of which were under Semler . The ECAC was recognized as Division - II hockey until 1979 at which point the conference , and thus Maine , became Division - I - the level of competition they have competed in ever since . Shawn Walsh era ( 1984 – 2001 ) . Many changes emerged for Maine following the 1983 season . One being the creation of The Hockey East Association , a new division - I men ' s ice hockey conference comprising many teams Maine competed against in the ECAC . The other was parting ways with coach Jack Semler and hiring Shawn Walsh , a 29 year old ex - 3rd string goalie out of Bowling Green State University . After stints as an assistant coach for his alma mater as well as Michigan State University where he and Ron Mason turned the Spartan ' s program from being sub - . 500 performers to national contenders in only half a decade , Maine liked his potential . He inherited a struggling team , so win / loss improvement was not immediate ; Maine posted a 23 - 57 - 2 record over Walsh ' s first two years with the program . However , Walsh was attracting top recruits , and convincing the school , the state , and its fans that UMaine had the potential to become a powerhouse in college hockey . 1986 brought the first of many significant accomplishments for Walsh and the program . At 24 - 16 - 2 , he posted his first winning season as a head coach . The team also made its first NCAA tournament appearance this season , ironically losing in the first round to Michigan State . After finishing as the conference runner up in ' 87 and ' 88 they brought home their first significant championship during the 1988 - 89 season . Walsh ' s Black Bears skated past Boston College in a 5 - 4 win for their first of 5 HEA Championships . 4 of these would come under Walsh . Due to the success and popularity of the program , Alfond Arena expanded its capacity from 3 , 800 to well over 5 , 000 in 1992 . 1993 National Championship . Maine was a heavy favorite to win their first national championship during the 1991 - 1992 season . Unfortunately , their hopes were broken when they suffered a surprise first - round loss to MSU . After losing the likes of Hobey Baker Award winner Scott Pellerin , threatening scorer Jean - Yves Roy , and many other impact players following the season , expectations for the team dropped entering ' 92 - ' 93 . However , college hockey would soon learn that the Black Bears had an exceptionally gifted freshman class on their hands in 1992 . This included future NHL Star Paul Kariya , and highly touted identical twin forwards , Peter and Chris Ferraro . This caliber of talent joining Maine ' s all time leading scorer Jim Montgomery , " Little " Cal Ingraham , defensive stud Chris Imes , and arguably one of the best goaltending tandems in college hockey history in Garth Snow and Mike Dunham , Maine was set up to make a historic run . Kariya scored a single season school record 100 points , while Montgomery put an exclamation point on the end of his successful college years finishing with a school record 301 career points . All this was en route to an amazing 42 - 1 - 2 season record , a HEA regular season championship , the HEA conference championship , and their first ever national championship . Their destiny was almost blown during the Frozen Four semi - finals against the University of Michigan when the referees disallowed an otherwise legitimate Maine goal . The backside of the net raised when the puck slid in causing deception as to whether or not it really went in . As a result , the game was tied at the end of regulation when Maine felt they should have won . In overtime , Lee Saunders made everything right by scoring the game winner and sending Maine to the title game against defending champ Lake Superior State University . Maine ' s near - perfect season found itself in jeopardy once again in championship game . Despite an early and promising 2 - 0 lead , the Bears found themselves trailing the seasoned Lakers 4 - 2 after two periods . Working double shifts for period number three , two likely heroes emerged . Jim Montgomery scored a natural hat - trick in the third period lifting Maine to a 5 - 4 win . All three goals were assisted by Paul Kariya . There was a crackdown on many big college hockey programs during the 1990s for playing players that were deemed ineligible . Maine was one of these teams , and they suffered consequences including forfeited losses both retroactively and in future seasons . Some questioned the legitimacy of the 1993 title , but the NCAA did not touch it because the players in question were from previous seasons and did not participate in Maine ' s championship . 1999 National Championship . The middle years of the 1990s were bittersweet for the Black Bears . They enjoyed some on - ice success and finished the national runner up in 1995 , but due to sanctions and penalties for reasons previously mentioned , they were unable to compete in the NCAA tournament in 1996 and ' 97 . The 1998 - 1999 season crowned a much less likely champion than that of 1993 . Maine did not win the regular season crown , nor did they even finish 2nd in the conference tournament . They advanced to the NCAAs on an at - large bid due to a successful regular season , but were not most analysts ' favorite to win the national championship . Following wins over Ohio State and Clarkson , Maine advanced to the 1999 Frozen Four in Anaheim , California where they would meet some familiar foes . Not long after Maine and Boston College met in the Hockey East semi - finals , they squared off again ( this time ) in the national semi - finals . This result would fair better for Maine as goalie Alfie Michaud bested Scott Clemmensen lifting the Black Bears past the Eagles 2 - 1 in overtime . Though Maine ' s traditional nemesis for years was Boston University ( not only through meaningful games , but because of a well documented rivalry between Shawn Walsh and BU Head Coach , Jack Parker ) , an even bigger feud was emerging between Maine and the neighboring New Hampshire Wildcats . Led by Hobey Baker Award winner Jason Krog and future NHL goaltender Ty Conklin , # 1 ranked UNH was primed to win their program ' s first national championship . Goals by Ben Guite and Niko Dimitrakos ( Maine ) , and more outstanding goaltending by eventual tournament MVP Alfie Michaud kept Maine competitive and the scoreboard read 2 - 2 at the end of regulation . Shortly after the 10 minute mark in OT , a careless play by UNH in their defensive zone turned into Maine ' s opportunity as Cory Larose swiped a drifting puck off the nearside boards and made a cross - ice pass to Marcus Gustafsson . Conklin made the initial save but with no defensive help , Gustafsson collected his own rebound and scored the game winner to clinch Maine ' s 2nd National Championship . The Death of Walsh . Coach William ' Shawn ' Walsh inherited a relatively new and obscure hockey program at The University of Maine in 1984 and he was convinced that it could be built up to greatness . His finger was clearly on the pulse of every aspect of the program , and he held a sincere understanding of what it would take to develop success . It would take a diligent combination of recruiting the right players , a proper coaching staff to develop talent , the support of the University and the Athletic Department , and a highly engaged fan - base and student fan - base to create a one of a kind experience in college hockey . He took personal ownership in each of these categories . During its grassroots , there are even great stories passed on of Shawn marching into the student dining commons , standing up and shouting on the tables - rallying students down to the games , and encouraging them to create a loud and hostile environment for Maine ' s opponents . The light blue " Maine - iak " shirts worn by the students at UMaine were one of his many ideas . Most supporters and enthusiasts of the program credit the foundation of greatness held by the Black Bear Men ' s Ice Hockey team almost exclusively to Shawn Walsh . In June 2000 , Shawn was diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma ( cancer of the kidneys ) . Knowing that his time may be limited , he hand selected the coach he wanted to take over the team if anything were to happen . Always known as a fiery coach , some were surprised when he selected mild mannered ex - UMass Lowell Riverhawk coach , Tim Whitehead ( Hamilton ' 85 ) . Whitehead earned his graduate degree in education at The University of Maine approximately 10 years prior , and during this time he worked with Walsh as a graduate assistant coach . Shawn Walsh lost his battle with cancer on September 24 , 2001 . A green clover with his name underneath is hung with the other 3 retired numbers in Alfond Arena in his honor . In 2006 , The Shawn Walsh Hockey Center , a new extension of Alfond Arena with coaching and administrative offices , meeting areas , and brand new player facilities opened . This several million dollar project was funded through private donations - - - many donations coming from dozens of players Walsh coached through his 17 years with Maine . Tim Whitehead era ( 2001 – present ) . As expected , Tim Whitehead became the interim head coach following the tragic passing of Shawn Walsh at the start of the 2001 - 2002 season . He was later named the permanent head coach after a very successful first campaign in a year where he was eventually honored with the Spencer Penrose award which recognizes the NCAA coach of the year . Walsh won the Penrose award in 1995 . The team reached the championship game in 2002 , the first season under Whitehead . Attempting to " win it for Shawn " , they had to play The University of Minnesota Golden Gophers in their home state for the finals . They were 1 minute away from a win when Minnesota tied the game with their goalie pulled . In overtime , after a controversial non - call against Minnesota , followed shortly by a questionable 2nd penalty in a row against Maine gave the Gophers enough power play time to find the back of the net and win the game . Two years later , backed by the most statistically strong single - season goalie tandem in the NCAA record books ( Jimmy Howard 1 . 19GAA . 953 Save pct * both NCAA records ; Frank Doyle 1 . 81GAA ) , future NHL player Dustin Penner , a slew of popular forwards including Todd Jackson , Colin Shields , Maine ' s own Greg Moore and Derek Damon , conference rookie of the year Michel Leveille , and tough - guy defenseman Prestin Ryan , Maine found itself back in the big game . The Bears controlled the tempo and jumped on the board early against Denver University on a Derek Damon goal , but the referees disallowed the goal explaining that part of the skate of Mike Hamilton crossed a line on the goalie crease as the goal went in . Though Howard only allowed 1 goal , Maine ' s offense could not find its rhythm after the disallowed goal and they lost 1 - 0 . That offseason , the NCAA reviewed the rule it followed to call off Maine ' s goal . They decided to adjust the rule to emulate the NHL ' s policy on this type of play , that is , only making a " man - in - the - crease " call if the player whose skate crosses the crease actually effects the outcome of the play or the goalies ability to make the save . In retrospect , Damon ' s goal would have counted . In the summer of 2008 , Assistant Coach Guy Perron and Volunteer Assistant Coach Grant Standbrook both stepped aside from the program . Standbrook retired , while Perron was hired as an amateur scout for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League . Season - by - season record . Hockey East season - by - season record Award winners / finalists . Steve Kariya : Paul Kariya : Scott Pellerin : Chris Imes : Jean - Yves Roy : Jim Montgomery : Mike Golden : Dave Capuano : Jim Leger : Garth Snow : Blair Allison : Dan Shermerhorn : Alfie Michaud : David Cullen : Niko Dimitrakos : Michael Schutte : Peter Metcalf : Robert Liscak : Michel Leveille : Greg Moore : Jimmy Howard : Prestin Ryan : Todd Jackson : Colin Shields : Season - by - season leading scorers . The ( + ) denotes a tie in total points at the end of the season . Women ' s program . See Maine Black Bears women ' s ice hockey