Hall of Fame
The 1999-2000 Norwich University men's ice hockey team captured the school's first NCAA national championship in any team sport. The team posted a school-record 29 wins, while losing only two games and tying one. The team did not lose a game in the calendar year 2000, going 22-0-1 in the run up to the national title.
The team was captained by seniors Mike Ludwar '00, Bryce Herperger '00, and Curt Healey '00, whose veteran leadership helped lead the team through the tight moments.
The Cadets opened up the NCAA Tournament by defeating Rochester Institute of Technology two games to none in a quarterfinal series, outscoring the Tigers by a combined score of 9-2. In the semifinals, NU won an overtime thriller, 5-4, over a heavily favored Wisconsin-Superior squad, before going on to claim a 2-1 victory over St. Thomas in the title game to take home the Div. III national championship.
The 1999-2000 team contained five players who scored 100 points in their career: Herperger, Healey, Marc Bellemare, Jim Nagle and Keith Aucoin. Nagle set the current single-season school-record for assists that year with 46.
Goalie Randy Hevey was among the Div. III national leaders in victories (18), save percentage (.909), and goals against average (2.09).
Bellemare, Aucoin and senior defensemen Mike Ludwar were all First Tema All-Americans and were also named to the ECAC East First Team.
Aucoin was tabbed as the ECAC East Player of the Year.
Head coach Mike McShane was named the ECAC East Coach of the Year for the third time in his tenure at Norwich.
"we were really hungry and ready to win it," said team captain Mike Ludwar '00 of the national championship. "It was tough to lose at home the previous year. To beat Wisconsin-Superior in its home rink in the semifinal was really special."
Adds forward Marc Bellemare '00, "It was gratifying, I got what I wanted and what we had strived to achieve for four years. It was meant to be; closure. We had an amazing time and it ended the way it should have ended."
"The biggest reason for our success was the great nucleus of guys," Ludwar reflects. "Everybody knew their role and did it."
