Daniels wins Penrose Award as National Coach of the Year
April 3, 2012 02:51 PM
Farmington Hills, MI... For his efforts in leading Ferris State University to its first NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Frozen Four appearance in school history, Bob Daniels has been chosen winner of the 2012 Spencer Penrose Award as Division I Men’s Ice Hockey flexxCOACH/AHCA Coach of the Year.
For Daniels, this marks his second Penrose Award, having been previously honored by his peers in 2003. He will receive his award on Saturday, April 28, during the American Hockey Coaches Association annual convention in Naples, Fla.
Entering Thursday afternoon’s semifinal contest vs. Union College, Daniels’ Bulldogs have compiled an overall record of 25-11-5, capturing the regular season title in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association along the way.
Ferris State advanced to this year’s Frozen Four in Tampa by virtue of winning the NCAA Midwest Regional in Green Bay, Wis., on March 23-24. The Bulldogs defeated the University of Denver in the opening game, 2-1, and came back to down Cornell University by the same score in the final.
Daniels, this year’s CCHA Coach of the Year, is completing his 20th season at Ferris State. A 1982 graduate of Michigan State University, Daniels got his coaching start in junior hockey, three times earning Coach of the Year honors for the Hennessey Engineers of the North American League from 1983-1986.
He earned a master’s degree in sports organization while serving as a graduate assistant at Miami University during the 1986-87 season. From there, he spent two years as an assistant at the University of Illinois-Chicago.
Daniels first arrived at Ferris State in 1989 and served as an assistant under John Perpich for one year and Bob Mancini for two. He was named head coach in 1992 and his career mark stands at 333-361-79.
In his previous Coach of the Year season, he led Ferris State to a record of 31-10-1 in 2002-2003.
The longest serving coach in FSU history, Daniels has coached eight All-Americans (prior to this year’s announcements), including 2003 Hobey Baker Hat Trick Award Finalist Chris Kunitz, the first ever CCHA Player of the Year to come from Ferris State. Daniels has also been very active with USA Hockey and the American Hockey Coaches Association.
Assisting Daniels this season were Drew Famulak and Mark Kaufman. Famulak will also be honored in Naples, as it was previously announced that he will receive the Terry Flanagan Award, recognizing an assistant coach for a career body of work.
The runners-up for this year’s AHCA Men’s Division I Coach of the Year award were Rick Bennett of Union College and Norm Bazin of UMass-Lowell.
The Spencer Penrose Award is named in memory of the Colorado Springs, CO benefactor who built the Broadmoor Hotel Complex, site of the first ten NCAA championship hockey tournaments. All AHCA Coach of the Year awards are selected by the head coaches in each division and are sponsored by flexxCOACH, a leader in hockey instruction, including drill creation and design and on-line seminars.
Winners of the AHCA Spencer Penrose Award Division One Coach of the Year
1951 Edward Jeremiah, Dartmouth
1952 Cheddy Thompson, Colorado College
1953 John Mariucci, Minnesota
1954 Vic Heyliger, Michigan
1955 Ralph "Cooney" Weiland, Harvard
1956 William Harrison, Clarkson
1957 Jack Riley, Army
1958 Harry Cleverly, Boston University
1959 John "Snooks" Kelley, Boston College
1960 Jack Riley, Army
1961 Murray Armstrong, Denver
1962 Jack Kelley, Colby
1963 Tony Frasca, Colorado College
1964 Tom Eccleston, Providence
1965 Jim Fullerton, Brown
1966 Amo Bessone, Michigan State
1967 Edward Jeremiah, Dartmouth
1968 Ned Harkness, Cornell
1969 Charlie Holt, New Hampshire
1970 John MacInnes, Michigan Tech
1971 Ralph "Cooney" Weiland, Harvard
1972 John "Snooks" Kelley, Boston College
1973 Len Ceglarski, Boston College
1974 Charlie Holt, New Hampshire
1975 Jack Parker, Boston University
1976 John MacInnes, Michigan Tech
1977 Jerry York, Clarkson
1978 Jack Parker, Boston University
1979 Charlie Holt, New Hampshire
1980 Rick Comley, Northern Michigan
1981 Bill O’Flaherty, Clarkson
1982 Ferny Flaman, Northeastern
1983 Bill Cleary, Harvard
1984 Mike Sertich, Minnesota-Duluth
1985 Len Ceglarski, Boston College
1986 Ralph Backstrom, Denver
1987 John "Gino" Gasparini, North Dakota
1988 Frank Anzalone, Lake Superior
1989 Joe Marsh, St. Lawrence
1990 Terry Slater, Colgate
1991 Rick Comley, Northern Michigan
1992 Ron Mason, Michigan State
1993 George Gwozdecky, Miami
1994 Don Lucia, Colorado College
1995 Shawn Walsh, Maine
1996 Bruce Crowder, MA-Lowell
1997 Dean Blais, North Dakota
1998 Tim Taylor, Yale
1999 Richard Umile, New Hampshire
2000 Joe Marsh, St. Lawrence
2001 Dean Blais, North Dakota
2002 Tim Whitehead, Maine
2003 Bob Daniels, Ferris State
2004 Scott Sandelin, Minnesota Duluth
2005 George Gwozdecky, Denver
2006 Enrico Blasi, Miami
2007 Jeff Jackson, Notre Dame
2008 Red Berenson, Michigan
2009 Jack Parker, Boston University
2010 Wayne Wilson, RIT
2011 Nate Leaman, Union
2012 Bob Daniels, Ferris State