Michael John Addesa Jr. (January 8, 1945 – November 29, 2022) was an American ice hockey coach and football player. Addesa was the head coach of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute men's ice hockey team from 1979 to 1989.[1] Addesa played collegiate football at Holy Cross.[2]
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 8, 1945 West Roxbury, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | November 29, 2022 (aged 77) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1966–1967 | Stoneham HS (asst.) |
| 1967–1968 | St. Mary's HS |
| 1968–1973 | Randolph HS |
| 1973–1974 | Wellesley HS |
| 1974–1976 | Holy Cross (asst.) |
| 1976–1979 | Holy Cross |
| 1979–1989 | Rensselaer |
| 1989–1990 | Notre Dame Hounds (GM) |
| 1990–1995 | Detroit Red Wings (scout) |
| 1995–2012 | Boston Bulldogs (HC/GM/Owner) |
| 2011–2013 | Calgary Flames (scout) |
| 2015–2017 | Vancouver Canucks (scout) |
| 2015–2017 | Seacoast Spartans (GM) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 236–155–9 (.601) [College] |
| Tournaments | 3–2–1 (.583) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Awards | |
| |
Coaching career
editIn 1974, Addesa became an assistant ice hockey coach at Holy Cross. He was elevated to head coach in 1976 and stayed in that position until the end of the 1978–1979 season, when he was hired by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.[3]
Addesa was hired by RPI to replace Jim Salfi who had coached the team from 1972 to 1979.
In his 10 years with RPI, Mike Addesa won one NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championship in 1985 and two ECAC Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championships in 1984 and 1985.[4]
Addesa was forced to resign as head coach at RPI in 1989 due to philosophical differences, stemming from the controversy over accusations of making racist comments towards one of two black players on his team, one of whom was future NHL player Graeme Townshend: "If you don’t put forth a greater effort, the world will only see you as a stereotypical nigger.” He has apologized for the comments. Townshend accepted the apology, and has voiced 100% support for Addesa from the beginning. Townshend has stated that his relationship with Addesa was unlike any player/coach relationship he had ever experienced, and that Addesa went above and beyond the job of just being a coach. Townshend viewed their relationship as being closer to a father/son thing. "I loved the guy.”[5] Addesa would later go on to say that he had not meant the comments "racially" [6] and to describe his firing from RPI as a "scam" which had made it impossible for him to continue coaching.[7]
Post-coaching career
editAfter his departure from RPI, Addesa served as the chairperson of the Committee to Bring Pro Hockey to Albany, which was formed in May 1989 by Albany County Executive Jim Coyne with the objective of bringing a prospective team to the Knickerbocker Arena, using RPI's Houston Field House as an interim rink prior to the opening of the new venue in Albany.[8][9] He resigned from the position in January 1990 and began working with Mike Cantanucci to place an American Hockey League team in Troy,[10][11] resulting in the establishment of the Capital District Islanders for the 1990–1991 season.[12]
Addesa worked as a scout for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League from 1990 to 1995 and the Calgary Flames from 2011 to 2013.[13] On August 4, 2015, Addesa was named as a scout for the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League.[14]
Personal life and death
editAddesa died peacefully, surrounded by loved ones, on November 29, 2022, at the age of 77 from natural causes.[15]
Head coaching record
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holy Cross Crusaders (ECAC 2) (1976–1979) | |||||||||
| 1976–77 | Holy Cross | 15–12–0 | 10–12–0 | 16th | |||||
| 1977–78 | Holy Cross | 17–9–0 | 14–7–0 | T–8th | ECAC 2 East Quarterfinals | ||||
| 1978–79 | Holy Cross | 18–10–0 | 14–9–0 | 10th | ECAC 2 East Quarterfinals | ||||
| Holy Cross: | 50–31–0 | 38–28–0 | |||||||
| Rensselaer Engineers (ECAC Hockey) (1979–1989) | |||||||||
| 1979–80 | Rensselaer | 16–11–0 | 14–8–0 | 6th | ECAC Quarterfinals | ||||
| 1980–81 | Rensselaer | 16–13–0 | 10–11–0 | t–10th | |||||
| 1981–82 | Rensselaer | 9–18–2 | 6–12–2 | 14th | |||||
| 1982–83 | Rensselaer | 18–11–0 | 13–7–0 | 7th | ECAC Quarterfinals | ||||
| 1983–84 | Rensselaer | 32–6–0 | 17–3–0 | 1st | NCAA Quarterfinals | ||||
| 1984–85 | Rensselaer | 35–2–1 | 20–1–0 | 1st | NCAA Champion | ||||
| 1985–86 | Rensselaer | 20–11–1 | 13–7–1 | 4th | ECAC Quarterfinals | ||||
| 1986–87 | Rensselaer | 13–18–2 | 9–13–0 | T-7th | ECAC Third Place Game (Tie) | ||||
| 1987–88 | Rensselaer | 15–17–0 | 9–13–0 | 8th | ECAC Quarterfinals | ||||
| 1988–89 | Rensselaer | 12–17–3 | 8–12–2 | 8th | ECAC Quarterfinals | ||||
| Rensselaer: | 186–124–9 | 119–87–5 | |||||||
| Total: | 236–155–9 | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
References
edit- ↑ "MHKY All-Time Coaching Records". RPI Athletics Website. Retrieved October 14, 2014.
- ↑ "All-Time Letterwinners" (PDF). College of the Holy Cross, Department of Athletics. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2014. Retrieved October 14, 2014.
- ↑ "Mike Addesa". Internet Hockey Database. Retrieved October 14, 2014.
- ↑ Wallace, William N. (February 1, 1986). "R.P.I. Hockey Mixes Class and Classes". The New York Times. Retrieved October 14, 2014.
- ↑ "Mike Addesa and the State of Racism in the NHL". OneCanuck. August 7, 2015. Archived from the original on August 11, 2015.
- ↑ Dupont, Kevin Paul (May 19, 1989). "What He Said Controversy Reigns About Mike Addesa's Racial Remark -- and His Resignation as RPI Coach". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015 – via HighBeam.
- ↑ Kane, Mike (May 26, 1991). "Addesa branded, shunned by colleges". The Daily Gazette – via Google News.
- ↑ Kane, Mike (June 19, 1989). "Albany Hockey Committee Chasing After Agreements, Faces Deadline". The Daily Gazette. p. 12. Retrieved March 31, 2026 – via Google News.
- ↑ Kane, Mike (January 18, 1990). "Albany Has New Investor, Renews Drive for IHL". The Daily Gazette. p. C1. Retrieved March 31, 2026 – via Google News.
- ↑ Kane, Mike (January 19, 1990). "Cantanucci Likes Albany's Chances". The Daily Gazette. p. B8. Retrieved March 31, 2026 – via Google News.
- ↑ Kane, Mike (June 22, 1990). "Cantanucci, Cooney Both Intent On Isles". The Daily Gazette. p. D1. Retrieved March 31, 2026 – via Google News.
- ↑ Dittmeier, Bob (July 7, 1990). "Warm Reception for CD Islanders". The Daily Gazette. p. D2. Retrieved March 31, 2026 – via Google News.
- ↑ "Mike Addesa". Elite Prospects.
- ↑ "Canucks name Weisbrod assistant general manager". Sportsnet. Canadian Press. August 4, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
- ↑ "Former RPI Coach Mike Addesa Dies". College Hockey News. November 30, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2022.