When I took my tour of Colorado College as a prospective student, I was promised 300 days of sunshine. Now I don’t know the facts – whether or not Colorado Springs reaches its quota each year – but I do know that Coach Scott Owens has. On Friday, Oct. 12, he reached 300.
In the first regular season game of the 2012-13 season, after 13 winning seasons, Colorado College witnessed Owens, the winningest coach in school history, reach win number 300.
It came in dramatic nail-biting fashion. With CC parents, students, and die-hard fans interested in witnessing Scott Owens reach this anticipated milestone, the world arena was packed, over 6,500 strong. A game that looked to be a blow out, even as late as a couple minutes into the third period, ended up coming down to the wire. It seemed fitting that in a historic game, Owens was forced to do some commendable coaching to reach 300 wins.
The game started slow, but the Tigers got the only first period goal – a rocket from captain William Rapuzzi that beat the goalie far-side. After Clarkson tied the game early in the second, the Tigers went on to score four unanswered goals, two of which were shorthanded. The fourth-straight goal came two minutes into the third period, and seemed, at the time, to be the final straw.
The game was all but over. Penalties and turnovers got the Tigers into trouble as they slowly watched their four-goal lead dissipate into one. Down 5-4, Clarkson, in a last desperation effort, pulled its goalie and forced Tigers goalie, Josh Thorimbert, to make some saves and preserve the victory.
After wins on Friday and Saturday, coach Owens boasts a 301-185-43 record, which ranks him 42nd in wins among college hockey coaches all-time and 14th among active coaches.
As we look back on Scott Owens’ head-coaching tenure at Colorado College, we think not only of the wins and losses, the glory and the heartbreak, but we think also of what this coach has meant to our school’s hockey program.
In 1999, Scott Owens took over for Don Lucia. Before his departure for the WCHA rival Minnesota Gophers, Coach Lucia had lead the Tigers to six straight winning seasons, and a National Championship appearance. Don Lucia had successfully put the Tigers back on the map. At the time, Lucia’s departure felt like betrayal to the Colorado College faithful, however, when Scott Owens took over, he kept the Tigers rolling. Two years into his tenure at CC, Owens led the Tigers to three straight NCAA appearances. And in 2005, the Tigers returned to the Frozen Four. Since ’05, CC has reached the tournament three more times, ’06, ’08, and ’11, when our Tigers routed the defending champion, Boston College Eagles, 8-4.
Thus far, what makes Scott Owens career remarkable to us at CC is that all of his 301 college hockey, head coaching wins have come with the same team – our team.