ECAC Hockey Announces First Group in Top 50
ALBANY, N.Y. -- As part of its 50th anniversary celebration, ECAC Hockey has comprised a group of its top 50 players to recognize the storied history of the League and honor its significant players. The League today announced the first installment of honorees as part of its top 50 players of all-time. The top 50 players were determined by a selection committee made up of former coaches and media members. These honorees were tallied from 145 players (47 defenseman; 73 forwards; and 25 goaltenders).
The first segment of honorees includes: Rensselaer forward Bob Brinkworth, a two-time ECAC Hockey Player of the Year who ranks third all-time in NCAA history averaging 1.54 goals per goal; Ken Dryden, goaltender at Cornell, a three-time all-America and all-League selection who guided the Big Red to the 1967 League and NCAA titles; Mark Fusco, a defenseman at Harvard, the first defenseman to be named ECAC Hockey Player of the Year and first collegiate defenseman to win the Hobey Baker Award; Brian Mueller, defenseman at Clarkson, a two-time all-America selection, who amassed over 150 points during his career; and Boston College forward Joe Mullen, a two-time all-League selection who was part of the 1970-79 ECAC Hockey All-Decade squad.
All current and former teams’ impactful players, including those from Boston College, Boston University, New Hampshire, Middlebury, Army, etc... were reviewed in comprising the list of candidates for the special team. Five players from the top 50 all-time team will be released every two weeks throughout the season leading up the championship in March 18-19 in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Throughout its history, ECAC Hockey has been home to seven NCAA men’s championship teams, witnessed over 15,000 games, produced more than 500 National Hockey Leaguers, nearly 300 All-Americans, three Hobey Baker Memorial Award winners, and over 1,100 student-athletes who have earned All-Academic honors since 1999-00, the first year the League recognized these individuals.
"We are extremely proud and honored to recognize the outstanding individuals who are the fabric of our great League and its tremendous history, “ commented Steve Hagwell, Commissioner, ECAC Hockey. “While we will recognize the accomplishments of an extraordinary group of 50 individuals over the course of the year, the League pays tribute to the countless student-athletes, coaches, administrators, and staff who have contributed significantly to building the foundation of the League over the course of 50 years.”
Hagwell remarked, “the selection of 50 players was an extremely difficult task given the vast number of deserving candidates. We truly are indebted to the individuals who comprise the selection committee for their valuable insight and great work."
The top 50 players were determined by a vote of a selection committee of 10 individuals, which include Joe Bertagna, former student-athlete at Harvard, former hockey commissioner of the ECAC and current commissioner of Hockey East, Ed Carpenter, former Sports Information Director at Boston U.; Bill Cleary, former student-athlete, head coach and director of athletics at Harvard; John Connolly, long-time sports reporter at the Boston Herald; Dan Fridgen, former student-athlete at Colgate and former head coach at RPI; Mike Gilligan, former head coach at Yale (interim) and Vermont; Lou Lamoriello, former student-athlete and head coach at Providence and current CEO/President/General Manager of the New Jersey Devils; Mark Morris, former student-athlete at Colgate and former head coach at Clarkson; Tim Taylor, former student-athlete at Harvard and former head coach at Yale; and Adam Wodon, editor of the College Hockey News Web site.
Bob Brinkworth - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute -
Forward, (1961-64) - Toronto, Ontario
Two-Time All-America (1963-64) ... Two-Time ECAC Hockey Player of
Year (1963-64) -- One of only two players (Scott Fusco, Harvard) to
repeat as Player of Year ... Three-Time ECAC Hockey All-Conference
First Team (1962-64) ... 1964 ECAC Hockey All-Tournament First Team
... 1962 Rookie of Year ... Co-Captain of Engineers’ 1964
Team ... 1964 ECAC Hockey Goals Leader (35 in 26 games) ... Led
Engineers in Goals Three Consecutive Seasons, and Points Two
Consecutive Seasons ... Netted 110 Goals and 106 Assists in 71
Collegiate Contests ... Scored a Career-Best 41 Goals in 1961-62
... Registered a School-Tying Best 9 Hat Tricks in 1961-62 ...
Ranks Third All-Time at RPI in Goals (110) and Points (216) ... One
of Only Four Engineers to Average 3.00-Plus Points Per Contest
(3.04) ... Ranks Among NCAA All-Time Leaders in Goals Per Game,
Career (Third, 1.54); Goals Per Game, Season (Fourth, 1.86 in
1961-62); Points Per Game, Career (Fifth, 3.04); and Assists Per
Game, Career (Seventh, 1.49) ... Inducted into RPI Hockey Ring of
Honor in 2009
Ken Dryden - Cornell University - Goaltender, (1967-69)
- Islington, Ontario
Three-Time All-America (1967-69) ... 1969 ECAC Hockey Player of
Year ... Three-Time All-Conference First Team (1967-69) ...
Three-Time All-Tournament First Team (1967-69) ... Two-Time ECAC
Hockey Tournament Most Outstanding Player (1968-69) ... Three-Time
NCAA All-Tournament Selection (First Team 1967; Second Team
1968-69) ... NCAA 50th Anniversary Team Honoree ... Three-Time ECAC
Hockey Goals-Against Average Champion (1967: 1.46; 1968: 1.52;
1969: 1.79) ... Three-Time ECAC Hockey Save Percentage Champion
(1967: .945; 1968: .938; 1969: .936) ... Three-Time ECAC Hockey
Annual Goaltending Leader (1967-69) ... Combined Record: 76-4-1 ...
Member of 1967 NCAA Champions ... Three-Time League Champion
(1967-69) ... Two-Time Cornell Most Valuable Player (1967, 1969)
... Recorded 14 Shutouts in 83 Collegiate Contests ... Finished
Collegiate Career with 1.59 Goals-Against Average and .939 Save
Percentage ... Elected to Cornell Athletic Hall of Fame in 1978 ...
Six-Time Stanley Cup Champion with Montreal Canadiens
(1971-73-76-77-78-79) ... Six-Time NHL All-Star Selection (First
Team 1973-74-76-77-79; Second Team 1972) ... Five-Time Vezina
Trophy Recipient as Top NHL Goaltender (1973-76-77-78-79) ...
Recipient of Calder Memorial Trophy (Top Rookie) in 1972 and Conn
Smythe Trophy (Stanley Cup Playoff MVP) in 1971 ... Inducted into
the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983
Mark Fusco - Harvard University - Defenseman, (1980-83)
- Burlington, Mass.
Three-Time All-America (1981-83) ... 1980 ECAC Hockey Rookie of
Year ... 1983 Hobey Baker Award Winner ... Three-Time
All-Conference (First Team 1981 and 1983; Second Team 1982) ...
1983 NCAA All-Tournament Selection ... Harvard’s All-Time
Goals Leader by Defenseman (44) ... All-Time Harvard Leader Among
Defensemen for Points in Season (46, 1982-83) and Career Points
(135) ... 1980-89 ECAC Hockey All-Decade Selection ... Member
of 1983 League Champions ... 1984 U.S. Olympian ... Member of 1985
U.S. National Team , and 1981 U.S. Junior National Team ... One of
Only Two Crimson Players to Earn Three First-Team All-America
Honors (Joe Cavanagh) ... First ECAC Hockey Player and First
Collegiate Defenseman to Win Hobey Baker Award ... Two-Time Honoree
(1982& 1983) of Harvard’s John Tudor Memorial Award for
Team MVP ... 1983 Recipient of Harvard’s William J. Bingham
Award (Honoring Harvard’s top male athlete in any sport.) ...
Played Two Seasons with Hartford Whalers of NHL ... 1997 Inductee
into Beanpot Hall of Fame
Brian Mueller - Clarkson University - Defenseman,
(1991-95) - Liverpool, New York
Was a leading contributor on three Clarkson NCAA Tournament teams
and served as a co-captain of the 1994-95 Golden Knight squad which
won the ECAC Regular Season title … A top ten candidate for
the 1995 Hobey Baker Award … Two-Time All-America First Team
(1994-95)... Two-Time All-Conference First Team, only unanimous
selection in both 1994 and 1995 ... 1992 All-Rookie selection ...
1990-99 ECAC Hockey All-Decade First Team ... 1995 ECAC Hockey
All-Tournament Selection ... Member of 1993 League Champions ...
Selected to play in 1995 Shrine Senior East-West All-Star Game
… Amassed 39 Goals and 117 Assists in 131 Collegiate
Contests ... Posted a Team-Best 42 Assists in 1994-95, leading all
ECAC defensemen ... Ranks Tied for First All-Time Among Clarkson
Defensemen with 117 Assists ... One of Only Five Clarkson Defenders
to Record 100-Plus Points, and One of Only Two (Bill Blackwood) to
Amass 150-Plus Points in a Career … Was a 1991 NHL Draft
choice of the Hartford Whalers (7th round –
141st).
Joe Mullen - Boston College - Forward, (1975-1979) - New
York, New York
Two-Time All-America (1978-79) ... Two-Time All-Conference First
Team (1978-79) ... 1970-79 ECAC Hockey All-Decade Second Team ...
1978 ECAC Hockey Tournament Most Outstanding Player ... 1978 NCAA
All-Tournament Selection ... Captain of Eagles’ 1979 Team
... 1978 ECAC Hockey Goals Leader (34 goals in 34 games) ...
Member of 1978 League Champions ... Led Eagles in Goals Three
Consecutive Seasons ... Guided Boston College to Three Playoff
Appearances and Overall Record of 73-48 (.617 Pct.) ... One of Top
American-Born Players Ever to Play in NHL ... Member of Three
Stanley Cup Champions (Calgary, 1989; Pittsburgh, 1991-92) ...
Two-Time All-New England Selection in 1978-79 ... Recipient of the
1978 Walter Brown Award, (Most Outstanding American-Born Collegian
in New England) ... Inducted into Boston College Varsity Club Hall
of Fame in 1998 ... Competed in 1,062 Games During 18-Year NHL
Career ... Scored 502 NHL Goals and Amassed 1,063 Points ... First
American-Born Player to Score 500 NHL Goals ... Retired as NHL's
Highest Scoring American of All Time ... In 2000, Elected to Hockey
Hall of Fame
