Herb Brooks
Herbert Paul Brooks (August 5, 1937 – August 11, 2003) was an American ice hockey coach, best known for coaching the U.S. hockey team to a gold medal at the 1980 Winter Olympics in an event known as the Miracle on Ice. Herb's wife's name was Patty.
On November 13, 2006 Brooks was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
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[edit] Early life
Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, he played on the Johnson High School hockey team that won the 1955 state hockey championship. Brooks later played hockey at the University of Minnesota and was a member of the 1964 and 1968 United States Olympic teams. He almost made the 1960 Olympic team, only to be cut the week before the Olympic games started. He then sat at home and watched the team he almost made win gold. Later, he coached the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers hockey team to three NCAA championships (1974, 1976, and 1979). He coached St. Cloud State University in the mid-1980s.
[edit] 1980 Winter Olympics
The Soviet Union, which had won four consecutive Olympic titles from 1964 to 1976, was considered the best team at these Olympics, while the U.S. reaching the medal round was already considered a surprise. Brooks' coaching style during the buildup to the games is widely regarded as ingenious, as he made himself the unifying factor (as both the object of respect and ire) among his team full of former teammates and rivals. The victory later became known as the Miracle on Ice.
[edit] Later career
He was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 1990 and into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2006.
Brooks later coached in the National Hockey League for the New York Rangers, where he became the fastest coach in Rangers' team history to win 100 games. He also coached the Minnesota North Stars, New Jersey Devils, and Pittsburgh Penguins. He was a long time head scout for the Pittsburgh Penguins from the mid 1990's until the day of his death.
He again coached the U.S. hockey team at the in 2002 at the Winter Olympics, this time winning a silver medal. He also coached France in the 1998 Winter Olympics.
[edit] Death and Legacy
Brooks died in a one-car accident on the afternoon of August 11, 2003, near Forest Lake, Minnesota on Interstate 35, only six days after he turned 66. It is believed that Brooks fell asleep behind the wheel before the accident after driving all night, and neither drugs nor alcohol were responsible.
Disney released a film about the 1980 Olympic team in 2004 called Miracle featuring Kurt Russell playing the part of Brooks. Brooks served as a consultant during principal photography, which was completed shortly before his death. At the end of the movie there is a dedication to Brooks. It states at the end, "He never saw it. He lived it."
Upon the 25th anniversary of the Miracle on Ice, the Olympic ice arena in Lake Placid, New York, where the United States won their gold medal, was renamed Herb Brooks Arena. A statue of Brooks depicting his reaction to the victory in the "Miracle" game was erected in Saint Paul, Minnesota in 2003.
An award was created in Herb Brooks name, the Herb Brooks Award, is awarded at the conclusion of the Minnesota State High School League's state hockey tournament to "the most qualified hockey player in the state tournament who strongly represents the values, characteristics, and traits that defined Herb Brooks.
In Blaine Minnesota there a training center called Herb Brooks Training Center. It trains hockey players and figure skater skills like Brooks wanted to do.
In 2006, Brooks was chosen for induction to the Hockey Hall of Fame.
