Penn State took another step toward building its hockey program by hiring Guy Gadowsky as head coach. Gadowsky joins the Nittany Lions after serving as head coach at Princeton for the last seven years. Prior to his tenure at Princeton, Gadowsky was head coach at Alaska for five years. Penn State will begin varsity competition as an independent for the 2012-13 season, but has hired Gadowsky at this juncture to serve as the architect of the future of the program.

Gadowsky has helped turned the fortunes of both Princeton and Alaska in his previous head-coaching roles. At Princeton, Gadowsky has coached seven All-Americans and led the Tigers to two NCAA Tournament appearances. That included the 2007-08 season during which Princeton won the ECAC Hockey playoff championship and Ivy League title. Gadowsky earned INCH Coach of the Year honors that season.

During his tenure at Alaska, Gadowsky turned a program that had lost 20 games or more in the five seasons prior to his arrival. In his third year as head coach, Alaska went 22-12-3 and finished among the top-15 in the national polls.

Gadowsky played his college hockey at Colorado College and currently serves as a member of the NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Committee.