Eaves Earns Recognition From USA Hockey
May 28, 2004 | Men's Hockey
University of Wisconsin men's hockey head coach Mike Eaves will be honored at the 2004 USA Hockey Annual Congress, June 2-6 in Colorado Springs, Colo., as winner of the USA Hockey Distinguished Achievement Award. Eaves, along with nine athletes, coaches, officials, administrators and volunteers will be honored for their excellence, dedication and contributions to the sport of hockey in the United States.
The Badger coach directed the 2004 U.S. National Junior Team to its first gold medal in the 28-year history of the International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship. Eaves, along with Badger defensemen Ryan Suter and Jeff Likens, and forward Jake Dowell, went 6-0-0 in the tournament, winning the gold medal with a 4-3 come-from-behind victory over Canada.
Eaves' significant experience with USA Hockey includes two highly successful seasons (2000-01 and 2001-02) as U.S. National Development Head Coach while overseeing the organization's National Team Development Program (NTDP) in Ann Arbor, Mich. Eaves led the 2001-02 U.S. National Under-18 Team to a 37-21-4 record, the best mark in NTDP history. He guided the team to the gold medal at the 2002 IIHF World Under-18 Championship in Piestany, Slovakia. With a 7-1-0 record, the Under-18 Team earned the first ice hockey gold medal for the U.S. at an A-Pool IIHF World Championship, excluding the Olympics, since 1933.
Last October Eaves became the first USA Hockey coach to be named the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) Developmental Coach of the Year, after also guiding the 2001-02 U.S. National Under-18 Team to a silver medal at the 2002 Five Nations Cup in Tyumen, Russia. As a player, in 1978 Eaves began a successful NHL career with the Minnesota North Stars, and was their rookie of the year in 1979-80. In the 1984-85 season the Calgary Flames nominated Eaves for the NHL's Bill Masterton Award, given to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to the game.
Eaves also skated for his country as a member of three U.S. National Teams. In 1976 and 1978 Eaves skated at the IIHF World Championship, and in 1981 Eaves represented the U.S. in the Canada Cup. Eaves captained the University of Wisconsin Badgers for all three years of his collegiate career. He recorded 267 points (94-173) in 160 games, and is still Wisconsin's leading scorer.
In 1988 Eaves traded in his skates to begin his coaching career as an assistant for the Philadelphia Flyers. He then became head coach of the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League. Beginning in the 1995-96 season, Eaves coached at Shattuck St. Mary's High School in Minnesota for two years, and guided Helsinki in the Finnish Elite League, before moving to the Pittsburgh Penguins as an assistant coach from 1997 to 2000.
Last season, Eaves also led Wisconsin to its first NCAA appearance since 2001 as the team reached the NCAA East region final. The squad completed the season 22-13-8 and 14-7-7 in league play. The league record placed the Badgers third in the WCHA 's final standings.
The USA Hockey Annual Congress is the yearly gathering of USA Hockey's volunteer leadership, including members of the organization's board of directors, councils, committees and sections. The event takes place June 2-6 at the Sheraton Colorado Springs Hotel.
