The Forecheck: When Mike Cavanaugh played at UConn's outdoor rink

The Huskies coach reminisced about the one time he played in Storrs at Bowdoin.

Jan 20, 2023

Welcome to the UConn Hockey Hub newsletter, which catches you up on all the stories, trends, and anything else you might have missed, along with some quick takes and leftover notes from the weekend.

One big thing

Mike Cavanaugh has been in charge for some of UConn men’s hockey’s biggest moments. He guided the program from Atlantic Hockey to Hockey East. He coached the Huskies at Freitas Ice Forum, the XL Center and was behind the bench for the first game at Toscano Family Ice Forum.

The only era Cavanaugh didn’t preside over at UConn was the pre-1998 Division II days when the team played in the old, outdoor rink. That doesn’t mean he wasn’t there for it, though. He just played for the other team.

It was Thanksgiving Weekend, 1988 — the start of Cavanaugh’s junior year — when Bowdoin made the long trek from Brunswick, Maine to Storrs. At the time, playing UConn didn’t mean much. After all, the Huskies hadn’t established themselves as a national powerhouse in basketball, so there wasn’t anything notable about them compared to any other team.

“They were just another opponent on the schedule,” Cavanaugh said.

When Bowdoin arrived in Storrs, they got out at Greer Field House and changed into their equipment. There was one minor detail Cavanaugh couldn’t figure out, though.

“I was like, ‘Where's the rink?’ They're like, ‘Oh no, you gotta get back on the bus to go to the rink.’ So we get back on the bus with our stick, our gloves, our helmet and our skates,” he remembered.

After a short bus ride, Cavanaugh arrived at one of the most famous buildings in UConn hockey lore: The warming hut.

“We went in and there was the wood stove — whatever the hell it was — and I think one team went to the right and one team went to the left,” he said. “There were flurries that night and I remember walking outside through the flurries and then playing the game.”

Cavanaugh only remembers a few small details from the game: The canvas coverings along the sides that were used to block the sun during the day. The cold. The darkness. Especially the darkness.

“I remember the wind and whatnot,” he said. “But it was so dark.”

Cavanaugh didn’t forget that Bowdoin beat UConn 5-2, though. The Nov. 26, 1988 edition of the Hartford Courant had a small blurb about the game but didn’t mention the program’s future head coach.

Bowdoin 5, UConn 2: After Mike Flaherty and John Guagliardo gave the University of Connecticut a 2-0 lead in the first period, Bowdoin College scored four goals in the second period in Storrs to deal the Huskies (3-6) their fourth loss in a row. The game was the season opener for the Polar Bears. Bowdoin outshot the Huskies, 36-27. UConn goalie Sean Rizzo made 31 saves; Steve Janas hade [sic] 27 for Bowdoin.

In his three years at Bowdoin, Cavanaugh went a perfect 4-0-0 against his future team. In 1987-88, the Polar Bears won 9-7 — “Todd Krygier had five goals in that game (for UConn),” the coach recalled — and in 1989-90, they beat the Huskies once in the regular season and once in the playoffs.

That experience eventually helped shape a feature in Toscano Family Ice Forum — the fireplaces in the men’s team lounge and club lounge as well as the firepit outside — but it didn’t have much of an impact when Cavanaugh interviewed for the UConn job. In fact, the campus was completely different than he expected.

“I had this totally different picture of what the campus was going to look like,” Cavanaugh said. “I had worked at state schools and spent a lot of time in different state schools and I was thinking it was just going to kind of have that similar look and I was really surprised. When you’re coming in [Route] 195, all those old brick buildings, the architecture is that old New England architecture — kind of that prep school look — which I wasn't expecting.”

But for someone who cares about the history of the UConn men’s hockey program as much as Cavanaugh, that one game gave him an appreciation for the old, outdoor rink in a way that pictures and words can never accurately describe.

“I said, ‘We have to have some piece of history here’ and that's why we have a little fireplace in our lounge and the firepit outside because I think it brings back some nostalgia of what that rink was about,” he said at the ribbon cutting last Thursday. “Again, it's about not forgetting where you came from and your roots.”

Week in review

From the UConn Hockey Hub:

From The UConn Blog:

Last week’s Forecheck:

The story behind UConn's 'Hook C' jerseys

Three stars

First star: Brooke Campbell

Campbell scored the first-ever goal in Toscano Family Ice Forum on Friday night against Merrimack when she re-directed a shot from Claire Peterson. Not only did Campbell find the back of the net, she also predicted that she’d be the first to score in the new arena.

Second star: Chase Bradley

While Campbell scored the first goal by anyone in Toscano, Chase Bradley became the first men’s player to light the lamp when his shot rolled up Devon Levi’s arm and in during the first period against Northeastern.

Third star: Toscano Family Ice Forum

UConn’s new hockey arena lived up to the hype during the opening weekend. The women’s hockey team saw a record crowd of 1,829 show up for the first game on Friday night while a full house of 2,691 watched the men’s hockey team on Saturday. There were more than a few notable names in the crowd, too: Geno Auriemma, Jim Calhoun, Jim Mora, Jim Penders and Jerry York, to name a few.

After 10+ years, the Huskies finally have a worthy home.