When his alma mater was in need and came calling, he couldn't say no. And now, after nine years at Brown University, Bob Gaudet '81 is coming home.
Dartmouth has named Gaudet as the next head coach of the men's hockey team, ending a week-long courtship and bringing back to Hanover one of the school's most prominent hockey alumni.
The new coach will be formally introduced at a press conference this afternoon at 2 p.m. at Oberlander Lounge in Alumni Gymnasium.
Gaudet -- who resigned as Brown head coach on Monday after nine years at the helm of the Bears -- replaces Roger Demment, who was fired and accepted reassignment after six years as Dartmouth head coach.
In a prepared statement, Gaudet said he was looking forward to coming back to Hanover and getting to work. "To come back as head coach is a wonderful situation -- I know the school and the people. Being familiar with the ECAC, I'm looking forward to meeting the players and getting right to it."
Athletic Director Dick Jaeger acknowledged that Gaudet was far and away the first choice of everyone on the search committee -- as evidenced by the fact that he was the only candidate of two dozen applicants for the job to be invited to Hanover for an interview.
Jaeger said he was looking for someone who was familiar with Ivy League and ECAC recruiting, admissions and financial aid realities, as well as someone who was experienced at the Division I level and had a good head coaching track record.
"As we looked down the list, [Gaudet] jumped right out at us," Jaeger said. "And after we reviewed a lot of resumes we said, 'Let's not go any further; if he'll accept the job then he's our person.'" Gaudet visited the College last Tuesday and Jaeger said he formally offered him the job over the weekend.
On Monday, the first day Brown returned from spring break, Gaudet summoned his players and told them he was leaving the program that in 1988 gave him his first head coaching job.
Jaeger would not discuss specifics of Gaudet's new deal, other than that it was a "multiple-year contract."
Most of next year's returning letter-winners were excited about the new coach.
"I had a chance to speak with Coach Gaudet and I was very impressed," winger Charlie Retter '98 said. "He impressed me both as a person and coach in the short time that I talked with him. I believe he is the fresh start Dartmouth hockey needed."
Defenseman Chris Showalter '99 said he is most excited about "having a coach come in who has already been part of a winning hockey tradition at Dartmouth -- a coach who has already excelled ... in the Dartmouth program and is now coming back as a head coach to bring that excellence and winning tradition back."
Jaeger said Gaudet's credentials were validated by the fact he has received "several good offers from prominent Division I schools" over the past few years. "We knew we were getting a highly sought and highly respected individual," he said.
During his tenure at Brown, Gaudet transformed the troubled program into one of the most competitive teams in the ECAC.
The Bears were 1-25 in Gaudet's first year behind the bench but steadily improved, climbing from 12th in 1989 to eighth in 1990 and 1991, fifth in 1992, third in 1993, fourth in 1994 and second in 1995.
In addition, Gaudet guided Brown to two Ivy League titles -- in 1991 and 1995 -- two ECAC semifinal appearances, and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 1993, the school's first berth in the tournament since 1976.
For his outstanding coaching efforts, Gaudet was recognized as one of ten finalists for Division I Coach of the Year in both 1993 and 1995. And he was named ECAC Coach of the Year in 1995, the year he led Brown to a second-place finish.
Gaudet graduated from the College in 1981 with a degree in visual arts. While at Dartmouth, he was a standout in goal for the men's hockey team, and in both 1979 and 1980 he led the Big Green to Ivy League titles and appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
He compiled a 4.00 goals-against average and an .877 save percentage in 76 career games for the Big Green. Gaudet was also a two-time All-Ivy selection.
Following graduation, Gaudet bounced around a couple of minor league affiliates of the former Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League before a knee injury cut short his playing career.
He was an assistant coach for the Big Green for five years after that, before moving to the head job at Brown.
