NU alum’s job may be in Jeopardy!
COLLEGE NOTEBOOK
It has long been an axiom that hockey people stick together. So when Ontarioborn hockey enthusiast and game-show host Alex Trebek was asked about a preference of his successor on Jeopardy!, the 78-year-old said: Alex Faust and Laura Coates.
Faust is a 28-year-old alum of Northeastern, where he worked as a student broadcaster for Huskies hockey and basketball games before accepting his current position as Los Angeles Kings playby-play announcer. Coates is a legal analyst and frequent on-air personalty for CNN.
“I’m flattered by Mr. Trebek’s kind words, and delighted to hear he’s a big @LAKings fan!,” Faust wrote on Twitter.
Whether or not Faust makes a switch from the ice rink to the game-show stage, he is aware no matter what your chosen profession or avocation, hard work and luck are needed.
“Well, there is no linear path. You have to carry yourself with incredible humility and with a scrappiness to fight for what you believe. You have to be patient. It won’t come overnight,” said Faust.
Faust also reflected on his career path and NU roots.
“It was an awesome experience to call the Northeastern games and great fun to do. Every game there was in historic buildings,” he said, “not only Matthews (Arena) but places like Alfond Arena in Maine, all over Hockey East. The BC-BU rivalry. The Beanpot. When I try to tell people about the Beanpot and what a great tradition it is, the people out here in the West say, ‘Oh, that sounds so cool!’ But, they don’t really understand the traditions behind it.”
“I had always dreamed and hoped that someday I would make it to the NHL. It happened a lot sooner than I expected. I have been so fortunate and it all comes back to doing college hockey and the opportunity to work NESN games, and it all started at Northeastern,” said Faust, who was a student broadcaster partnered with Jared Shafran on WRBB-FM.
NU coach Jim Madigan described Faust as a “very impressive individual.”
“He’s a very impressive young man, articulate, with a real good, strong understanding of sports, not only hockey but basketball, which he did here, as well,” said Madigan. “He has a tremendous passion. I was always impressed with how prepared he was. How well he researched our opponent. He had a weekly show on NU sports (also on WRBB) and worked a lot of college games and that’s how I got to know him.
“Not many people know this but he gave up a fulltime job at Deloitte in order to pursue his passion,” Madigan added. “So, he had a quiet confidence about him but he worked really hard to get where here.”
Faust, who has maintained his connections with NU hockey, will emcee the Howling Huskies Coaches Caravan, when it makes a stop in Dennis on Aug. 16. The event is a low-key way for NU alumni to meet and greet the hockey coach and receive an update on the program.
“I’m looking forward to catching up with Jim. I can’t tell you what he has been to me, to help me to be able to have a chance to pursue my passion and it’s going to be a lot of fun down there to catch up with the program,” Faust said. “You know, this year, we had an off day in Carolina, so I called a few friends and said, ‘You know, this might be the year.’ So we flew up to the Beanpot to watch NU win. It was incredible. You know, anytime that I go back to Matthews to watch a game, you still get that feeling that you had when you were a college student.”
Coaches on the move
Former Merrimack College coach Mark Dennehy was named the head coach of the Binghamton Devils, the AHL affiliate of the NHL New Jersey Devils. Dennehy, a 50-year-old Dorchester native, played college hockey at Boston College. In addition to Merrimack, Dennehy has worked behind the bench at Princeton, Fairfield and UMass.
Also, BC coach Jerry York added former Eagles player Brendan Buckley to his coaching staff as a replacement for Greg Brown, who joined David Quinn’s coaching staff on the New York Rangers.