Norton named assistant men's hockey coach at Northeastern
Norton spent the last three seasons as an assistant on the Vermont men's hockey staff. He helped former head coach Mike Gilligan lead the Catamounts to a 10-win improvement in 2002-03 and to a 2001 ECAC playoff-series victory over top-seeded Clarkson, which was the first time in ECAC tournament history that the Golden Knights lost a playoff series in Potsdam, N.Y. Norton's responsibilities included recruiting student-athletes, coordinating recruiting visits, monitoring student-athletes' academic progress, assisting in practice preparation, coordinating the defense on the bench, and scouting extensively in the United States and Canada.
Prior to UVM, Norton served as an assistant coach at Div. III Norwich for four years. At Norwich, he helped head coach Mike McShane take the Cadets to the Frozen Four three times, including a National Championship in 2000. Norton was involved with all aspects of the program, including recruiting, scouting, working with the defense on the bench, and developing practice plans. Norwich went 90-23-7 (.779) during Norton's tenure.
In addition to his work at Norwich, Norton has been involved in USA Hockey since 1998, working with the Select 16 and 17 teams and all District camps. He has also coached at a variety of hockey schools during the summer, including the International Hockey Academy with Toot Cahoon, the Harvard Crimson Hockey School with Ronn Tomassoni, the UMaine Hockey Camp with Shawn Walsh, The Clinic at Bowdoin College with Terry Meagher, the UNH Hockey Academy with Dick Umile and the Phillips Exeter Hockey School with McShane.
A 1996 graduate of Hockey East rival New Hampshire, Norton played for coach Dick Umile from 1992-96. During his years at UNH, the Wildcats reached the NCAA tournament twice, including a trip to the second round during the 1993-94 season. Norton's claim to fame at UNH, was scoring a game-tying goal in the 1994 Hockey East quarterfinals. On March 12, 1994, in the last game played at Snively Arena, the Wildcats rallied from a 3-0 deficit to eliminate Boston College from the tournament with a thrilling, 6-5 victory in double overtime.
TRANSACTION LINE -- Northeastern named Pat Norton assistant men's hockey coach.
August 15, 2003
Contact: Dave Henry (617) 373-3643
Pat Norton, a Concord, N.H. native, has been named an assistant coach for the men's hockey team at Northeastern University by Husky head coach Bruce Crowder.
