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Legends: MacInnes arrived quietly before dominant reign at MTU

Michigan Tech hockey coach John MacInnes looks on during a 1971-72 regular season game in Dee Stadium. (Michigan Technological University Archives Photo)

HOUGHTON — Unlike many of the high-level sports coaches of today, John MacInnes had a quiet start when he took over the Michigan Tech hockey coaching job.

There were no bells and whistles when he arrived in Houghton in the summer of 1956.

No major newspapers, television or radio networks were on hand for the event.

But MTU officials were happy to have MacInnes on board, albeit his original duties that included being an assistant football coach.

Future MTU football coach Bill Lucier, who came to Tech at the same time as MacInnes, said the football job amused the rest of the staff.

“John knew nothing about football,” Lucier recalled in an interview. “But he took the job seriously. In those days, they assigned you a position and you took it. Heck, I was made an assistant hockey coach.”

When MacInnes recorded a 14-9-6 record in his first season and kept moving steadily forward, Huskies fans knew why he had been hired for the job.

He guided Tech to a NCAA championship in 1961-62. His star players included Lou Angotti, who would later star in the National Hockey League.

“He (MacInnes) was a players coach. He let you know where you stood all the time, we respected that,” Angotti said in a later interview.

When Tech collected another NCAA crown in 1965, everyone knew he was the answer to a winning tradition.

MacInnes had a knack for spotting quality goaltenders. His list of netminders included Gary Bauman, Tony Esposito, Rick Best and Jim Warden — all whom would gain All-American status.

The MTU coach had been a goaltender at the University of Michigan for two seasons. He also spent three years in the Detroit Red Wings organization.

The Tech skipper alternated Esposito — a future NHL Hall of Famer — and Best during the 1964-65 campaign. Both had nearly identical stats that winter, but Esposito was not happy with the arrangement.

The late Bruce Riutta, an All-American defenseman from Hancock, said MacInnes stuck with his decision.

“Everyone knew that Tony (Esposito) wasn’t thrilled about it,” Riutta said. “But John did what he thought was best for the team, he never wavered.”

The Huskies won another NCAA title in the 1974-75 season, banking on a high-powered offense and the goalie work of Warden.

Suffering from declining health, MacInnes led Tech to the Final Four in 1980-81, relying on an unsung goalie in Frank Krieber and an ace defenseman in Tim Watters.

Krieber, a Houghton High product, got hot at mid-season, and was the key to a late-season drive.

“John MacInnes was the kind of coach you listened to because he had so much knowledge of the game,” Krieber said in a 1988 interview.

The legendary coach passed away in 1982, but he left a legacy that stands to this day.

His career win total of 555 was a then record among Division I coaches. He also produced 21 All-Amercans in that time.

He’s been named to several Hall of Fames. MacInnes was a charter member of the Upper Peninsula Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.

After his teams competed in the antiquated Dee Stadium (once featuring haywire instead of glass) for years, MacInnes was largely responsible for the 1971 construction of the Student Ice Arena, which now bears his name.

Pretty heady accomplishments for a career that started quietly.

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