Maine's Gendron Gone at 63

University of Maine men's hockey coach Dennis "Red" Gendron passed away on Friday at the age of 63.

A 1979 graduate of New England College, where he was a three-year hockey captain, Gendron had helmed Maine since 2013, and compiled an overall record of 103-137-32 while heading the Black Bears.

After a successful high school coaching career in New Hampshire and Vermont following his college graduation, Gendron began his collegiate coaching career at Maine as an assistant in 1990. He spent three seasons in Orono, helping the Black Bears to the 1993 NCAA championship, before moving on to the NHL and the New Jersey Devils. 

He worked three years with New Jersey as an assistant/video coach, earning a Stanley Cup ring in 1995. He then headed to Albany (AHL) as an assistant for four seasons, while also serving as a scout for New Jersey from 1996 to 2002, before taking over the Albany River Rats as head coach for the 2002-03 and 2003-04 campaigns. He earned additional Stanley Cup rings with the Devils in 2000 and 2003. 

A two-time assistant coach with the U.S. at the World Junior Championship in 2001 and 2002, Gendron spent the 2004-05 season as GM/head coach with Indiana (USHL) in the junior hockey ranks, before heading back to college hockey as an assistant at UMass from 2005 to 2011. The Minutemen made the NCAA tournament in 2007. 

After two years as associate coach at Yale University, where he helped the Bulldogs to the 2013 NCAA title, Gendron took the head coaching job at Maine. In his last full season with the Black Bears in 2019-20, he guided them to an 18-11-5 overall record and a potential NCAA tournament berth, before the season was ultimately canceled by COVID-19.

Maine Hires Gendron as Head Coach

Maine hired former assistant Dennis “Red” Gendron this week as head coach to replace the ousted Tim Whitehead. Gendron was on the staff of Maine’s first NCAA title team in 1993, and also coached in the New Jersey Devils organization. He then moved on to Massachusetts before spending the last two seasons at Yale,  garnering a second national championship ring in April with the Bulldogs.

With Mike Cavanaugh having been hired at UConn earlier this month, one of the last open head coaching positions in the Division I men’s ranks is at Alaska Anchorage, which assembled a new committee, including UAA hockey program founder Kelvin “Brush” Christiansen, to name a successor to Dave Shyiak. The former Northern Michigan skater was let go by the Seawolves after eight seasons and has been embroiled in some controversy lately involving an incident during his tenure at UAA.

Shyiak is still seeking a new coaching job along with Mark Osiecki and George Gwozdecky, who were released by Ohio State and Denver, respectively, this off-season. Osiecki spent three years at OSU after assisting at his alma mater of Wisconsin. Fellow Badgers alum Gwozdecky was not retained at Denver after 19 seasons with the Pioneers, including NCAA championships in both 2004 and 2005.

As reported tonight at USCHO.com, UAA athletic director Steve Cobb has been relieved of his duties. He had earlier received votes of no confidence from both the Anchorage youth hockey community and an alumni group of former Seawolf players.

The site is also reporting that the head coaching job at Alabama-Huntsville has just opened up after Kurt Kleinendorst stepped down after one season at the helm of the Chargers. UAH will join former independent foe UAA in the revamped Western Collegiate Hockey Association this fall.