Coach of another year
Bedeque native receives award for fifth time in his career
Gardiner MacDougall has been named top university hockey coach yet again.
Gardiner MacDougall has received another prestigious award.
The Bedeque native has been selected by his peers as the 2016-17 Atlantic University Sport (AUS) men’s hockey coach of the year for the fifth time in 17 years. MacDougall guided the U Sports No. 1-ranked UNB Varsity Reds to a 25-2-3 (won-lostovertime losses) regular-season record this year, and a firstplace finish in the Atlantic conference standings with 53 points. This is the 10th consecutive year UNB has finished first in the regular-season standings.
This season, the Varsity Reds led the nation in goals (148), assists (258), goals per game (4.93), shots per game (38.2) and power-play goals (51). They also allowed the fewest goals against, averaging just 1.90 per game.
To date, MacDougall boasts an impressive 419-161-18 career record, including regular season, AUS playoff and U Sports championship action. MacDougall is the fourth coach from the UNB Varsity Reds to earn AUS coach-of-theyear honours, and this is his fifth time earning the award.
Nominated for national award
He now becomes the Atlantic conference nominee for the Father George Kehoe Memorial Award as the U Sports coach of the year. MacDougall has earned the national award twice already in his career – first following the 2009-10 season, and then again following the 2014-15 campaign.
An AUS coach has claimed this award in five of the past seven seasons. St Francis Xavier head coach Brad Peddle earned the honour last season. Trevor Stienburg of the Saint Mary’s Huskies earned the accolade in 2012-13, and Moncton’s Serge Bourgeois in 2011-12.