Re: Bangor Daily News: Whitehead Fired
Just exactly what is a fully informed decision? You must mean the safe and calculated decision. No need to go out on a limb here as we all know how to make the easy choice which is keeping things as they are. Why bother searching at all, we can just maintain integrity and continuity and let the incumbent guy slide into the position. We all know how that worked out the last time we went that route.
How did it work out? Very well for 5+/- years. After that, not so good and change was in order.
A former Black Bear Assistant with Shawn Walsh in 1990-91, Whitehead returned to Maine in 2001 under the most difficult and challenging circumstances. When Walsh passed away from cancer on September 24, 2001, Whitehead was named interim Head Coach. Whitehead led a team devastated by the loss of their legendary coach on an emotional run all the way into overtime of the 2002 NCAA National Championship Game in St. Paul, Minn.
Determined to do something special in honor of Coach Walsh, the Black Bears went 10-1-2 down the stretch, including wins over Boston College and Boston University in the Hockey East playoffs. In the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Maine defeated Harvard 4-3 on freshman John Ronan's overtime goal, then beat Boston University in the East Regional Final, setting up a Frozen Four matchup with the UNH Wildcats. In St. Paul, Minn., Maine's team scored four third period goals to rout UNH 7-2, and advance to the NCAA Championship game against host Minnesota.
Although the Black Bears did not prevail versus the Minnesota Gophers that night, the message had certainly been sent that Maine Hockey's proud tradition of success would continue to grow. Whitehead and his staff had delivered a remarkable coaching performance, for which he earned the AHCA's 2002 Spencer Penrose Award as Division 1 National Coach of the Year. Following the season, Whitehead was introduced as the third Head Coach in Maine Hockey history on April 8, 2002.
Throughout his career, Coach Whitehead has earned a reputation for getting his teams to play their best at the end of the season, especially in the NCAA Tournament. In fact, Whitehead's .625 NCAA winning percentage ranks second All-Time among Hockey East coaches, and third among all active NCAA Division 1 coaches. Coach Whitehead's teams are a perfect 4-0 against Hockey East teams in NCAA competition; with victories over BU and UNH in '02, BC in '04, and UMass in '07.
In 2005-06, the Black Bears finished tied for second in Hockey East regular season play, and recorded a strong 28-12-2 overall record. The Black Bears rode the strength of their Special Team's play to reach the Hockey East semifinals for the third-straight season and earn a bid to their eighth-straight NCAA Tournament. In the NCAA's, Maine defeated ECAC Tournament Champion Harvard 6-1, and then beat CCHA Tournament Champion Michigan State 5-4 in the Regional Final. Maine lost to eventual National Champion Wisconsin at the Frozen Four in Milwaukee.
Despite a slow start to the 2004-05 Season, Maine went unbeaten in eight-straight games in January. Key wins down the stretch of the season gave the Black Bears home ice in the Hockey East playoffs for the sixth straight year. Maine advanced to the Hockey East semifinals with back-to-back wins over UMass Lowell, but were defeated by Boston College at the Fleet Center in double overtime 2-1. Maine qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the 15th time in school history. The Black Bears went toe to toe playing Minnesota on their home ice, as Jimmy Howard made 37 saves, but they lost 1-0 in OT, finishing the season at 20-13-7.
Team defense has also been a trademark of Coach Whitehead's teams at Maine. In fact, his 2003-04 Black Bears led the nation in both team defense and winning percentage with a 33-8-3 record. The 2003-04 season began with Maine knocking off two-time defending National Champion Minnesota in the first game of the season, and the Black Bears captured the Maverick Stampede Tournament title the following night with a 6-2 win over Wisconsin. After winning the first seven games of the season, the Black Bears were ranked first in the nation.
A loss at UMass Lowell on February 27 set the stage for Maine's amazing run in the 2004 postseason. Beginning with a 4-3 overtime win in the season finale against Boston College, the Black Bears won eight straight one-goal games. The winning streak included a triple overtime thriller against Massachusetts in the Hockey East Championship, won by the Black Bears 2-1. It was the longest game in Hockey East Tournament history, with Jimmy Howard stopping 66 shots (a Hockey East record), and Ben Murphy scoring the game-winner.
In the first round of the NCAA's, Maine rallied for a memorable 5-4 comeback win over Harvard, overcoming a three-goal deficit by scoring four goals in the third period. After a 2-1 overtime win over Wisconsin in the Regional Finals, Maine faced Hockey East rival Boston College at the Fleet Center in the Frozen Four and came away with a 2-1 win. The season ended with a heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Denver in the National Championship Game.
Maine got off to a fast start in 2002-03, and finished with a 24-10-5 record. Whitehead led Maine to the Black Bear Classic and Florida College Classic Championships, and completed the Hockey East regular season just two points out of first place. The Black Bears earned their fifth-straight NCAA Tournament berth, but once again had to face an opponent in their own rink. Maine lost a hard-fought 2-1 decision in the West Regional to Michigan at Yost Arena in Ann Arbor.
Whitehead came to Maine after serving as Head Coach of UMass Lowell for five seasons where he compiled a record of 76-93-11, including a 19-16-3 record in 2000-01 in which the River Hawks advanced to the semifinals of the Hockey East Tournament for the third time in five years, after upsetting UNH in a three-game playoff series in Durham, NH. Following the season, Whitehead was honored as a finalist for AHCA National Coach of the Year for the 2nd time at UMass Lowell. While at Lowell, Whitehead also received the 1996 University Medal for Community Service.