ST.

Wednesday, December 26, 2001

ST. CLOUD – Craig Dahl has made quite a name for himself as hockey coach at St. Cloud State University.

Under Dahl, the Huskies have achieved record attendance marks, seven WCHA Final Fives in 8 years including six straight appearances, a WCHA Final Five championship in 2000-01 and two consecutive NCAA appearances. Dahl was the 1998 WCHA Coach of the Year.

Now, Dahl’s Huskies are at the peak of their popularity. They entered the holidays as the No. 1 ranked Division I men’s hockey team in the nation.

Followers of college hockey are well aware of what Dahl has done at St. Cloud State. But they may not know where it all began, his home town, Albert Lea. Dahl’s parents, Alton and Myrtle, still live in Albert Lea, and he visits a couple times a year.

While Dahl has helped hundreds of young men create some unforgettable on-ice memories, the 1971 Albert Lea High School graduate has plenty of fond recollections from his boyhood days in Albert Lea: staying up all night flooding the hockey rink at Hammer Field, water skiing all summer on Fountain Lake, riding bicycle all over town with no worries.

And of course there was sports.

Dahl was an all-state quarterback in football, an all-conference defenseman in hockey and, in the spring, a hurdler and pole vaulter on the track and field team.

&uot;I remember how important the football games were and how excited everyone would get,&uot; said Dahl. &uot;We used to have about 7,000 people at the games. They used to paint Tiger paws on the road. It was such a big thing. It was real fun to be part of that.&uot;

Among the biggest influences on Dahl was Jim Gustafson, his football coach.

Dahl didn’t really consider coaching until after his second year in college, when he worked at a Minnesota Elks youth camp as a counselor and enjoyed the experience.

Dahl attended the University of Minnesota on a football scholarship in 1971. He transferred to Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Wash., where he graduated in 1976 with a degree in physical education and social sciences.

Dahl began collegiate coaching at Bethel College in St. Paul in 1980. In the first five seasons, Bethel was 61-75 overall and the Royals were Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference champions his second season. The Royals made three consecutive conference playoff appearances and Bethel won the NAIA consolation title in 1984. Dahl was named the MIAC Coach of the Year in 1985.

Dahl was head coach at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls for one season before coming to SCSU as an assistant to Herb Brooks during the 1986-87 season. The 1987-88 season was the first for Dahl as head coach at SCSU, the Huskies’ first year as an NCAA Division I Independent.

So how does it feel to be coach of the No. 1 ranked team? According to Dahl, no different than being No. 5 or No. 10 or No. 200.

&uot;I feel the same as I did five years ago,&uot; said Dahl. &uot;You can’t really focus on the rankings. You just continue to go about your business.&uot;

With Dahl’s 2001-02 Huskies riding atop the college ranks, it could be only a matter of time before the National Hockey League comes calling. But it’s not something that interests him.

&uot;I have no desire to go to the pro ranks,&uot; said Dahl. &uot;Because I really like my job in education – trying to build values, a philosophy of what it takes to be successful in life.&uot;

That philosophy is one of dedication and personal responsibility.

&uot;It sounds like a cliche, but it’s really true – just do your job,&uot; said Dahl. &uot;Our program really tries to develop the idea of personal responsibility – we don’t point fingers. You can control two things, how hard you work and how smart you play. Do the best you can at what you do and see what happens. Good things will happen.&uot;

Lately, Dahl has seen some good things happen with the ALHS boys’ hockey program, which he still follows. Friday morning he was well aware of the Tigers’ 3-2 upset of Rochester Mayo the previous night.

&uot;Albert Lea was a great town to grow up in, I’m telling you,&uot; said Dahl. &uot;I have some very fond memories of that place. I really appreciate the fact I grew up a town like Albert Lea and all the good people there.&uot;