St. Cloud State dedicates new statue of Herb Brooks on Oct. 26
10/29/2019 10:41:00 AM | Men's Hockey, Women's Hockey
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St. Cloud State University celebrated its connection with the legendary hockey coach Herb Brooks during a recent ceremony to unveil a new statue honoring the former Huskies' coach on Oct. 26.
In a special ceremony that took place between the games of a Huskies' hockey doubleheader at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center on Oct. 26, a statue saluting the life and legacy of Brooks was dedicated near the main entrance to the Huskies' home rink. A large crowd was on hand to hear comments from SCSU President Robbyn Wacker, Director of Athletics Heather Weems and men's hockey head coach Brett Larson prior to the unveiling along with a heartfelt message from Dave Brooks, who is the brother of Herb Brooks.
The recently dedicated Herb Brooks statue.
Thanks to a generous contribution from Dave Brooks, the statue's installation in front of the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center was made possible. The bronze likeness of Herb Brooks was created by Nick Christensen and his Brodin Studios, which is located in nearby Kimball, Minn. The statue is similar to the famed Herb Brooks statue, which is located near the Rice Park entrance to the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. The pedestal and statue in St. Cloud stands over 14 feet tall and it will greet fans as they enter the main entrance for SCSU men's and women's hockey games.
The dedication ceremony featured a large crowd of SCSU hockey fans, Brooks' family members along with players from Herb Brooks' teams at St. Cloud State and the University of Minnesota.
Herb Brooks coached Team USA to the Gold Medal at the 1980 Winter Olympics and went on to serve as the Huskies' head coach during the 1986-87 season. He led SCSU to a third place finish at the NCAA DIII championships in 1987 and played a key role in the Huskies' move to the NCAA Division I level in 1987-88. Herb Brooks also played a significant role in helping SCSU obtain funding for the original National Hockey Center, which was opened during the 1989-90 season. St. Cloud State later renamed the building the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in 2013 to honor Herb Brooks' place in the history at St. Cloud State and with the sport of hockey
Herb Brooks' hockey career including head coaching jobs in the NHL with the New York Rangers, Minnesota North Stars, New Jersey Devils and the Pittsburgh Penguins. He played college hockey at the University of MInnesota and went on to the play with Team USA in several world championships and in the Winter Olympic Games in 1964 and 1968. He later served as the head coach at the University of Minnesota and won three NCAA titles with the Gophers. In 1980, Herb Brooks served as the head coach for Team USA at the Winter Olympics and also coach Team USA at the Winter Olympics in 2002 (silver medal). In 1998, Herb Brooks served as the head coach for Team France at the Winter Olympics.
A mission for Herb Brooks was to help grow the sport at the collegiate level in the state of Minnesota. He was pivotal in the Huskies' move to the NCAA Division I level and since that time both Bemidji State University and Minnesota State University have elevated their hockey programs to NCAA Division I status. A testimony to Herb Brooks' vision is the fact that in the most recent NCAA Division I men's national poll released this week, St. Cloud State was ranked 16th in the nation and the other four Minnesota schools playing at the NCAA Division I level were either ranked among the top 20 or had received votes in the national poll.
