1947–48 Fort Devens State Chiefs men's ice hockey season

The 1947–48 Fort Devens State Chiefs men's ice hockey season was the 2nd season of play for the program but first under the oversight of the NCAA. The Chiefs represented Massachusetts State College–Fort Devens.

1947–48 Fort Devens State Chiefs
men's ice hockey season
Conference9th NEIHL
Home iceSkating Club of Boston Rink
Record
Overall3–10–0
Conference3–8–0
Home2–2–0
Road1–7–0
Neutral0–1–0
Coaches and captains
Fort Devens State Chiefs men's ice hockey seasons
« 1946–47 1948–49 »

Season

edit

In just its second season of existence, Fort Devens State was able to join the New England Intercollegiate Hockey League, a loose collection of teams that included some of the nation's top programs. While the Chiefs weren't expected to win many games, the stronger competition could allow the team to build itself into a respectable outfit by season's end. From the start, however, it was clear that Devens had some work to do. The team lost its opening game 1–10 but saw a swift turnaround when the fell to MIT by just a single goal.[1] The Chiefs continued their ascent in the third game and held the lead over Boston College after the first period. While the couldn't hold the lead, the team had at least proved they could put up a fight.[2]

Fort Devens was able to post its first win of the season just before the winter break and then notched their second victory once they returned. With the team suddenly in the midst of a playoff hunt, Devens' offense flagged in January and the team went through an extended losing skid. The lowest game for the club came against Harvard where the Chiefs were thoroughly dominated 2–17. The game was also notable for being very physical with many penalties handed out while several players were taken off the ice due to injury.[3] The team managed to get one more win before ending the season by being shutout by BC.

Despite the lackluster play in as the year went on, Fort Devens had found a diamond in the rough as Hal Downes was credited with stellar play throughout the season. The netminder was hailed as the main reason for the team's competitiveness in several matches.[4]

Roster

edit
No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team
Bruce
Burke
Burns
Jim Devlin RW
Hal Downes G
Ellis D
Ernie Falco W
Joyce
Kelley C
Larsen
McLaughlin
McManus
Mickey Metayer LW
Moulaison
Roche
Rogers LW/RW
Toohey RW
Wakeham D

Standings

edit
Intercollegiate Overall
GP W L T Pct. GF GA GP W L T GF GA
Army 16 11 4 1 .719 78 39 16 11 4 1 78 39
Bemidji State 5 0 5 0 .000 13 36 10 2 8 0 37 63
Boston College 19 14 5 0 .737 126 60 19 14 5 0 126 60
Boston University 24 20 4 0 .833 179 86 24 20 4 0 179 86
Bowdoin 9 4 5 0 .444 45 68 11 6 5 0 56 73
Brown 14 5 9 0 .357 61 91 14 5 9 0 61 91
California 10 2 8 0 .200 45 62 17 5 12 0 87 89
Clarkson 12 5 6 1 .458 67 39 17 10 6 1 96 54
Colby 8 2 6 0 .250 28 41 8 2 6 0 28 41
Colgate 10 7 3 0 .700 54 34 13 10 3 0 83 45
Colorado College 14 9 5 0 .643 84 73 27 19 8 0 207 120
Cornell 4 0 4 0 .000 3 43 4 0 4 0 3 43
Dartmouth 23 21 2 0 .913 156 76 24 21 3 0 156 81
Fort Devens State 13 3 10 0 .231 33 74
Georgetown 3 2 1 0 .667 12 11 7 5 2 0 37 21
Hamilton 14 7 7 0
Harvard 22 9 13 0 .409 131 131 23 9 14 0 135 140
Lehigh 8 0 8 0 .000 8 95 10 0 10 0 12 108
Massachusetts 2 0 2 0 .000 1 23 3 0 3 0 3 30
Michigan 18 16 2 0 .889 105 53 23 20 2 1 141 63
Michigan Tech 19 7 12 0 .368 87 96 20 8 12 0 91 97
Middlebury 14 8 5 1 .607 111 68 16 10 5 1 127 74
Minnesota 16 9 7 0 .563 78 73 21 9 12 0 100 105
Minnesota–Duluth 6 3 3 0 .500 21 24 9 6 3 0 36 28
MIT 19 8 11 0 .421 93 114 19 8 11 0 93 114
New Hampshire 13 4 9 0 .308 58 67 13 4 9 0 58 67
North Dakota 10 6 4 0 .600 51 46 16 11 5 0 103 68
North Dakota Agricultural 5 3 2 0 .600 27 28 6 4 2 0 37 29
Northeastern 19 10 9 0 .526 135 119 19 10 9 0 135 119
Norwich 9 3 6 0 .333 38 58 13 6 7 0 56 70
Princeton 18 8 10 0 .444 65 72 21 10 11 0 79 79
St. Cloud State 12 10 2 0 .833 55 35 16 12 4 0 73 55
St. Lawrence 9 6 3 0 .667 65 27 13 8 4 1 95 50
Suffolk
Tufts 4 3 1 0 .750 17 15 4 3 1 0 17 15
Union 9 1 8 0 .111 7 86 9 1 8 0 7 86
Williams 11 3 6 2 .364 37 47 13 4 7 2
Yale 16 5 10 1 .344 60 69 20 8 11 1 89 85
Conference Overall
GP W L T PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
Boston University 13 12 1 0 .923 86 40 24 20 4 0 179 86
Boston College * 10 9 1 0 .900 77 29 19 14 5 0 126 60
Northeastern 14 8 6 0 .571 108 79 19 10 9 0 135 119
Bowdoin 6 3 3 0 .500 32 38 11 6 5 0 56 73
MIT 14 5 9 0 .357 62 87 19 8 11 0 93 114
Middlebury 6 2 4 0 .333 27 48 16 10 5 1 127 74
New Hampshire 10 3 7 0 .300 42 56 13 4 9 0 58 67
Norwich 7 2 5 0 .286 25 50 13 6 7 0 56 70
Fort Devens State 11 3 8 0 .273 30 55
Colby 5 1 4 0 .200 17 27 8 2 6 0 28 41
indicates conference champion
* indicates conference tournament champion

Schedule and results

edit

Note: due to the closure of the college in 1949, records for the team are incomplete. It's unknown if the team played any non-collegiate opponents but all games against fellow universities are represented here.

Date Opponent Site Result Record
Regular Season
December 8 at Boston University Boston ArenaBoston, Massachusetts L 1–10  0–1–0 (0–1–0)
December 9 at MIT Boston ArenaBoston, Massachusetts L 3–4  0–2–0 (0–2–0)
December 15 at Boston College Boston ArenaBoston, Massachusetts L 2–4  0–3–0 (0–3–0)
December 16 Northeastern Skating Club of Boston RinkAllston, Massachusetts W 6–3  1–3–0 (1–3–0)
January 10 at Bowdoin Delta RinkBrunswick, Maine W 4–3  2–3–0 (2–3–0)
January 13 Northeastern Skating Club of Boston RinkAllston, Massachusetts L 1–8  2–4–0 (2–4–0)
January 19 vs. Brown* Boston ArenaBoston, Massachusetts L 1–2  2–5–0
January 20 at Boston University Boston ArenaBoston, Massachusetts L 3–6  2–6–0 (2–5–0)
February 2 at MIT Boston ArenaBoston, Massachusetts L 3–5  2–7–0 (2–6–0)
February 4 at Harvard* Boston ArenaBoston, Massachusetts L 2–17  2–8–0
February 7 at Norwich Sabine Field Rink • Northfield, Vermont L 2–3  2–9–0 (2–7–0)
February ? Norwich Skating Club of Boston RinkAllston, Massachusetts W 5–2  3–9–0 (3–7–0)
February 23 Boston College Skating Club of Boston RinkAllston, Massachusetts L 0–7  3–10–0 (3–8–0)
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll.

References

edit
  1. ^ "Pucksters Win Two 7-3, 4-3". The Tech. December 12, 1947. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  2. ^ "B. C. Sextet Beats Devens, 4-2". The Heights. December 18, 1947. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  3. ^ "Crimson Skaters Pillage Rough Fort Devens, 17-2". Harvard Crimson. February 5, 1948. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  4. ^ "Eagles Shutout Devens to Clinch Playoff Spot". The Heights. February 27, 1948. Retrieved May 16, 2023.