DE PERE, Wis. (NBC 26) — Tim Coghlin was greeted with stick taps from both ends of the ice at Rink 1 Friday night, but he thought it was just in recognition of his 600th win at the helm of the Green Knights men's hockey program.
He had no idea the ice he was standing on was about to be renamed in his honor.
"When you think about what Tim Coghlin has done for St. Norbert College, he's really been a model of consistency," athletic director Cam Fuller said after the pregame ceremony. "He's been here 28 years, he's won 600 games, 5 national championships, and the more we talk in the community – and this has really been a community effort – we play at a venue that is a community venue. So it really took the buy-in from our partners at Cornerstone Community Center. The more we talked about the idea the more energy it had."
Fuller added that the time felt right to honor Coghlin in a monumental way, so St. Norbert approached the facility first.
Coghlin's son, Joseph, was playing for Notre Dame Academy on another rink in the facility at the same time as the surprise ceremony, and walked over to Rink 1 to participate.
"We approached cornerstone and said, 'would there be an appetite for something like this?'" Fuller said. "And for those of you who know Tim, you know that Cornerstone has really been his second home over the last 28 years, so the relationships he's developed both in the community and here at Cornerstone Community Center, it's going to be really special for him. If you think about 5, 10, 15 years down the road, when he comes back to the ring, and maybe it's watching his son Joseph play – who is playing in another rink here during the ceremony. Goes to show what this community center means for the Coghlin family as well."
Coghlin has been the head coach for St. Norbert's men's hockey program since 1994. He led the Green Knights to their first national championship in 2008 after winning both Frozen Four games by shutouts. Coghlin was then named Division III Coach of the Year in 2008. Coghlin has led St. Norbert College to 19 NCAA Division III Tournaments since 1997, with national championships in 2008, 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2018 and 12 Frozen Four appearances.
