1922–23 Maine Black Bears men's ice hockey season

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1922–23 Maine Black Bears
men's ice hockey season
ConferenceIndependent
Home iceAlumni Field Rink
Record
Overall2–4–0
Home1–2–0
Road1–2–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachCuddy Murphy
Captain(s)Drew Stearns
Maine Black Bears men's ice hockey seasons
 1923–24 »

The 1922–23 Maine Black Bears men's ice hockey season was the inaugural season of play for the program.

Season[edit]

In late November, the athletic department decided to assume control of the ice hockey team from the intramural association. This formalized the adoption of the sport by Maine and began the first varsity campaign in program history.[1] By early December, Cuddy Murphy had been chosen to coach the team and a schedule was put together with a fairly ambitious slate. Two games would be played with each of the three other Maine schools (Bates, Bowdoin and Colby) while several matches with schools from Massachusetts were in the works.[2] While it was assumed at the time that the program would begin as a minor sport, the university decided to allow the student body to make the ultimate determination.

Unfortunately, a warm winter caused many of the potential games to be either scrapped or delayed. Maine wasn't able to play its first game until February and, even then, the team had precious little time on the ice. In spite of these problems, the team didn't look bad in their loss to Colby. Before the match began, the two captains agreed to not have the outcome determine which of the two would play Bates at the Winter Carnival. Since the two were going to play a week later and Maine still needed some practice time on the ice they agreed to let the rematch decide that instead.[3] A boisterous crowd was on hand for the Bears' first home game and the team provided their fans with the program's first victory. Drew Stearns was elected team captain just before the game and he responded by assisting on the final two goals to give the Black Bears a comeback win and a date with the Garnet in Augusta.[4]

Maine switched their lineup for the Bates match by moving Stearns to wing, Elliott to center and Coakley to defense. The hastily altered group faced off against the best team in the state. Somehow, the defense held strong and allowed just a single goal to the Garnet. Stearns scored two goals for the second game in a row and led the team to victory while also putting them into a position to potentially win the state title.[5] Afterwards, Maine travelled to meet Bowdoin and suffered a defeat at the hands of the Polar Bears. Stover and Stone were dropped back to defense while Mackay moved up to wing. The changes kept the two teams close for most of the match though Bowdoin held a narrow 3–2 lead at the start of the third. Maine's defensive effort collapsed in the final frame and they surrendered 4 goals to make the game seem more lopsided that it actually was.

A week later, the rematch with Bowdoin was held on poor ice but that didn't appear to slow down either team. After Stover started off the scoring twice in the first, Stearns grew the lead to 3 before the frame was out and Maine had a commanding lead after just 13 minutes. The Polar Bear surged back in the second and Maine was unable to stop the visitors from netting 4 goals in a stunning reversal of fortune. The choppy ice finally came into play in the third and helped prevent any more goals from being scored. The loss made it impossible for Maine to win the state championship but that didn't stop them from putting forth a valiant effort against Bates. The two fought bitterly with the Garnet still vying for the state title. Maine built a 2-goal lead thanks goals from Elliott and Stearns in the opening period. Bates cut the lead in half before the first intermission but Elliott restored the 2-goal margin early in the second. After Stearns got set off for a penalty, Bates came storming back and tied the game before the start of the third. The two exchanged goals early in the period but were unable to settle the score and overtime was required. The teams agreed to play two 5-minute periods but it wasn't until the end of the second that the winning goal was scored. Unfortunately, the puck was sent behind Baxter and Maine ended its season with another heartbreaking loss.[6]

Hampton Bryant served as team manager.

Roster[edit]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team
Massachusetts Charles L. Baxter Freshman G Rockland, Massachusetts
Massachusetts Roger G. Coakley Freshman D 1898-05-17 Beverly, Massachusetts
Maine Wilmer R. Elliott Sophomore D/F 1903-06-21 Patten, Maine
Massachusetts John R. Foster Sophomore G Roxbury, Massachusetts
Massachusetts Roger D. Mackay Freshman D/LW Dorchester, Massachusetts
Maine Drew T. Stearns (C) Junior C/LW 1899-08-11 Hebron, Maine
Massachusetts Roger B. Stone Freshman D/LW 1901-11-11 Swampscott, Massachusetts
Maine Clyde N. Stover Freshman D/RW 1903-03-06 York Beach, Maine

[7]

Standings[edit]

1922–23 Eastern Collegiate ice hockey standings
Intercollegiate Overall
GP W L T Pct. GF GA GP W L T GF GA
Amherst – – – – – – – 9 5 3 1 – –
Army 11 5 6 0 .455 26 35 14 7 7 0 36 39
Bates 9 6 3 0 .667 34 25 12 8 4 0 56 32
Boston College 5 5 0 0 1.000 30 6 14 12 1 1 53 18
Boston University 7 2 5 0 .286 21 22 8 2 6 0 22 26
Bowdoin 6 3 3 0 .500 18 28 9 5 4 0 37 33
Clarkson 3 2 0 1 .833 15 3 6 3 2 1 30 17
Colby 6 2 4 0 .333 15 21 6 2 4 0 15 21
Columbia 9 3 6 0 .333 14 35 9 3 6 0 14 35
Cornell 6 0 4 2 .167 6 16 6 0 4 2 6 16
Dartmouth 12 10 2 0 .833 49 20 15 13 2 0 67 26
Hamilton – – – – – – – 10 4 6 0 – –
Harvard 10 7 3 0 .700 27 11 12 8 4 0 34 19
Maine 6 2 4 0 .333 16 23 6 2 4 0 16 23
Massachusetts Agricultural 9 3 4 2 .444 13 24 9 3 4 2 13 24
Middlebury 3 0 3 0 .000 1 6 3 0 3 0 1 6
MIT 8 3 5 0 .375 16 52 8 3 5 0 16 52
Pennsylvania 6 0 5 1 .083 8 36 7 1 5 1 11 38
Princeton 15 11 4 0 .733 84 21 19 13 5 1 97 32
Rensselaer 5 1 4 0 .200 6 23 5 1 4 0 6 23
Saint Michael's – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Union 0 0 0 0 – 0 0 3 2 1 0 – –
Williams 9 5 3 1 .611 33 17 10 6 3 1 40 17
Yale 13 9 4 0 .692 70 16 15 9 6 0 75 26

Schedule and results[edit]

Date Opponent Site Result Record
Regular Season
February 3 at Colby* South End Arena • Waterville, Maine L 2–4  0–1–0
February 9 at Colby* Alumni Field Rink • Orono, Maine W 3–2  1–1–0
February 14 vs. Bates* Capital Park Rink • Augusta, Maine W 2–1  2–1–0
February 17 at Bowdoin* Delta Rink • Brunswick, Maine L 2–7  2–2–0
February 24 Bowdoin* Alumni Field Rink • Orono, Maine L 3–4  2–3–0
February 27 Bates* Alumni Field Rink • Orono, Maine L 4–5 2OT 2–4–0
*Non-conference game.

Note: Maine archives differ from contemporary accounts about the dates and number of games.[8]
[7]

Scoring statistics[edit]

Name Position Games Goals
Drew Stearns C/LW 6 7
Clyde Stover D/RW 6 4
Roger Stone D/LW 4 3
Wilmer Elliott D/C/RW 6 2
John Foster G 1 0
Roger Coakley D 5 0
Charles Baxter G 6 0
Roger Mackay D/LW 6 0
Total 16

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Athletic Association to Control Hockey". The Maine Campus. November 22, 1922. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  2. ^ "1922-23 Hockey Schedule Promises Excellent Games". The Maine Campus. December 6, 1922. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  3. ^ "Hockey Team Loses to Colby at Waterville". The Maine Campus. February 7, 1923. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  4. ^ "Maine Hockey Team Defeats Colby 3-2". The Maine Campus. February 14, 1923. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  5. ^ "Maine Defeats Bates in Close Hockey Game". The Maine Campus. February 21, 1923. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  6. ^ "Bates Puck Chasers Nose Out Maine Team". The Maine Campus. February 28, 1923. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  7. ^ a b "Maine Prism 1924". University of Maine. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  8. ^ "2022-23 Maine Hockey Media Guide" (PDF). Maine Black Bears. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
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