April 19, 2006
Rensselaer Names DU's Appert Head Coach

By Mike Eidelbes

Rensselaer has announced the hiring of University of Denver assistant Seth Appert as its next head coach. Appert replaces Dan Fridgen, who resigned last month after 12 seasons as the Engineers' coach.

According to a release issued by the school, Appert has verbally agreed to a four-year contract. At 31, he becomes the youngest head coach in Division I men's hockey. Rensselaer finished in a sixth-place tie in the ECAC Hockey League last season with a 14-17-6 overall record and an 8-8-6 mark in conference play. The Engineers were swept by Quinnipiac in an ECACHL first-round, best-of-three playoff series.

"Seth is recognized throughout college hockey as a winner on and off the ice," said Ken Ralph, the school's athletic director, in the statement. "He is a person who consistently brings out the best in his players and we fully expect him to do so at Rensselaer."

Given his background with the Pioneers -- he was a volunteer coach under George Gwozdecky for two seasons while attending graduate school, then spent seven seasons as a full-time aide -- Appert seems to be a natural fit for Rensselaer which, like Denver, is an academically challenging institution with an undergraduate enrollment of approximately 5,000 students. It's also a school with a long hockey history that has gone fallow in recent years. The Engineers haven't won an ECACHL regular-season championship since 1985 and haven't captured the conference postseason title since 1995, which is also the year RPI made its last NCAA Tournament appearance.

In seven seasons as a full-time assistant at Denver, Appert helped the Pioneers to consecutive national championships in 2004 and 2005, and WCHA regular-season and playoff titles in 2002 and 2005. Widely acclaimed for his work with the team's goaltenders, Wade Dubielewicz developed into an All-American and Hobey Baker Award candidate in 2002 under his watch, while Adam Berkhoel and Peter Mannino earned Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player honors in 2004 and 2005, respectively. Both Dubielewicz and Berkhoel logged time in the NHL this season – Dubielewicz was 2-3-0 in seven appearances with the New York Islanders, while Berkhoel was 2-4-0 in nine games with the Atlanta Thrashers.

A native of Cottage Grove, Minn., Appert was a four-year letterwinner in goal at Ferris State from 1992-96. He was an undergraduate assistant for Bob Daniels at FSU during the 1996-97 season.