Irreplaceable

It's hard to imagine the UNB Varisty Reds men's hockey team preparing for the 2024-25 season without the man to the left behind the bench, but UNB made it official today as they announced that Gardiner MacDougall was retiring after 24 seasons of running the Reds hockey program. While it's true that MacDougall doesn't have many more accolades or accomplishments that he hasn't already achieved in U SPORTS, the magnitude of MacDougall retiring from his post at the University of New Brunswick would be similar to when Gordie Howe or Wayne Gretzky retired. His impact was felt across this country, and I'm sure there will be another U SPORTS coach as good as MacDougall in my lifetime. A new chapter begins, but it's hard to say goodbye.

According to reports, MacDougall is set to take over the QMJHL's Moncton Wildcats as early as tomorrow as their head coach with his son, Taylor, assuming the roles of General Manager and Director of Hockey Operations. MacDougall has already had CHL success after winning the Memorial Cup with the Saint John Sea Dogs back in 2022, but the MacDougall duo will get an opportunity to rebuild the Moncton Wildcats into a perennial powerhouse just as Gardiner had done with the UNB Reds. No one is expecting to see Moncton in the Memorial Cup next season, but the belief is that the MacDougall duo will be able to set the franchise up for long-term success.

That announcement will likely come sometime soon, but the winningest coach in U SPORTS hockey history leaves behind a legacy that very few will even approach. His 490 regular season wins are the most in university hockey history while his 43-0-0 winning streak this season is the best season ever estalished in U SPORTS. He and Tom Watt share the record for the most U Cup championship titles with nine, and he led UNB to twelve U Cup championship games. His 17 appearances at the U Cup are also a record for all coaches, and his ninth-straight appearance this season tied him for the second-longest streak in U SPORTS history.

"It's been an unbelievable experience and journey here," MacDougall told the crowd in attendance. "Every year, you get different opportunities that you look at, probably, that was enhanced this year because of our record and the amount of attention our team got and my time with the under-18 team. This time we looked at one of those opportunities to see if made sense."

In 985 games with the Reds, MacDougall sported a record of 732-232-21 for a .743 save percentage - easily the highest win total and win percentage over that number of games in university hockey. He's won a pair of gold medals at two FISU World Universiade Games, he has a U18 World Championship gold medal won this year, and he holds virtually every coaching record that can be named in the AUS with the Reds. Outside of Clare Drake, only Gardiner MacDougall has been as successful in Canadian university men's hockey, and there is zero doubt that MacDougall will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder at some point on top of the many Hall-of-Fame inductions he's already received. He absolutely deserves it.

I could go on about his accolades, but his time with the Reds has come to a close. It was always a reality that he could go elsewhere, but his commitment to UNB and its students for a quarter-century now leaves a massive hole on the Canadian university hockey landscape. I still expect his work in the community will continue, albeit in Moncton rather than in Fredericton, but I'm not sure the void that MacDougall leaves behind at UNB will ever truly be filled. His retirement today will have ripple effects on university hockey for years, but I am excited to see what the MacDougall duo can do in taking the reigns in the CHL with Moncton.

Expect that announcement in the coming days where Gardiner MacDougall takes his current 47-game win streak to the Wildcats. For UNB, a search for a new coach begins today. I won't use the word "replacement" because I'm very sure that Gardiner MacDougall will never be replaced at UNB after all he accomplished there.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!