Shaun Hannah, the head coach at Sacred Heart for the last 13 years, stepped down Wednesday, the school announced. Hannah said in the school statement that he felt “this is the right time for me to take my career in a different direction.” A search for his replacement will begin immediately.

“Sacred Heart University and Sacred Heart athletics owe Shaun Hannah a great debt of gratitude,” executive director of athletics Don Cook said in a statement. “If there ever was someone who understood the mission, vision and core values of Sacred Heart it was Shaun Hannah. And, in every way Shaun advanced that mission, vision and core values through the Sacred Heart men’s ice hockey program. “

Hannah guided the SHU ice hockey program in its transition into Division I in the MAAC and, later, Atlantic Hockey. Hannah was named the 1999-2000 MAAC Coach of the Year after leading the Pioneers to a 16-win season, an improvement of nine wins over the previous year.

The highlight of the Pioneers time in Atlantic Hockey was in 2004 when Hannah’s squad reached the inaugural Atlantic Hockey Championship game before falling to Holy Cross. During both the 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons the Pioneers won a school-record 21 games. They earned the top seed in the Atlantic Hockey playoffs in 2007.

“If there’s any good news from this it’s that Shaun’s tenure as head coach leaves a program marked only by integrity and success on the ice and in the classroom,” Cook said. “Shaun wouldn’t have it any other way. Thankfully he remained here long enough to give the program the organizational infrastructure and stability needed to succeed in the future. Shaun will be sorely missed, so too Scared Heart’s most loyal fans, his wife, Amy and beautiful daughter, Emma.”

“I will forever be grateful for the opportunity that I have had to grow both personally and professionally at Sacred Heart over the last 13 seasons, but I feel that this is the right time for me to take my career in a different direction,” Hannah said. “ While I will miss not seeing the people associated with the hockey program and university on a daily basis, I expect to be following the team closely and rooting for them as they challenge for championships in the years to come.”