Albert I. Prettyman

Albert I. Prettyman
	Prettyman, c. 1922, pictured in the Hamilton College yearbook
Biographical details
Born	February 7, 1883; Milford, Delaware, U.S.
Died	May 24, 1963 (aged 80); Fort Pierce, Florida, U.S.
Alma mater	YMCA College
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1917–1920	Hamilton
Ice hockey
1918–1943	Hamilton
1943–1944	Colgate
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
?–?	Hamilton
Head coaching record
Overall	11–10–3 (football); 141–80–7 (ice hockey)

Albert I. Prettyman (February 7, 1883 – May 24, 1963) was an American sports coach and athletics administrator. During his coaching career he was head coach of many sports including basketball, track and field and football, but the majority of for his coaching work was in ice hockey. When he died, the American Hockey Coaches Association called him "the father of college hockey." He was also director/coach of the 1936 USA Winter Olympics hockey team, winning the bronze medal. Prettyman was a member of two Olympic Committees and the founder, and lasting member of, the NCAA Hockey Rules Committee.

Early life

Prettyman was born on February 7, 1883, in Milford, Delaware.^[1] He attended International Young Men's Christian Association Training School (now known as Springfield College) in Springfield, Massachusetts, where he graduated in 1906.^[2] While there he briefly played on the school's ice hockey team.

College coach

After spending time at Columbia University and the Nichols School in Buffalo, New York, Prettyman moved to Hamilton College in Clinton, New York to teach physical education and coach. At Hamilton, he coached numerous sports including football, track, basketball, baseball, and hockey. He is best known for his work with the hockey team.^[2] He started the Hamilton hockey team in 1918 with the first rink a frozen over tennis court at Hamilton College. In 1921, Prettyman convinced the college to build the Russell Sage Rink, an indoor hockey facility, by using a portion of a large donation from the Russel Sage Foundation. The rink is the oldest continuously operated college built covered arena in America.^[3] Prettyman later became Hamilton's athletic director and from 1926 to 1946 the chairman of the ice hockey rules committee for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).^[2]^[4] He coached hockey at Hamilton from 1918 until 1943. After the Continentals shut down for World War II, he spent the 1943-44 season with Colgate before they too suspended play.^[5]

1936 Olympics

Prettyman was the head coach/director for 1936 United States Hockey Team in the Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.^[2]^[4] Prettyman led a team that included United States Hockey Hall of Fame member John Garrison. The team finished 6–2–1 record and a bronze medal including a tie with eventual gold medal winner Great Britain.^[6]

Coach Prettyman and the US hockey team got into an incident with Adolf Hitler the evening before the US-German Hockey game. Hitler was upset with the fact the US team did not acknowledge him with customary Nazi salute during the opening ceremony. Hitler told the team in German, “We will beat your American team on the ice tomorrow.” Backup goalie Francis Baker, who was acting as translator, responded in German, "We will not only beat Germany in hockey tomorrow; the United States will always defeat Germany." The next day the U.S. beat Germany 1-0 in a snowstorm on an outdoor rink. In fitting retribution, Francis Baker continued his studies at Hamilton after the Olympics, became a doctor and landed as a medic on the beaches of Normandy in 1944 to make good on his locker room promise to Hitler eight years earlier.^[7]

Death and legacy

Prettyman died on May 24, 1963, in Fort Pierce, Florida.^[1] Shortly after his death, the American Hockey Coaches Association called him "the father of college hockey."^[2] Even before he died Prettyman was the first person elected to the American Hockey Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame.^[4] Hamilton College honors him each year by awarding the Albert I. Prettyman Award to the player “who demonstrated outstanding dedication, determination, and desire. His attitude has proven to be not only an asset to his team, but an inspiration to his teammates and coaches.”^[8]

Head coaching record

Ice hockey

Statistics overview
Season	Team	Overall
Hamilton Continentals Independent (1918–1943)
1918–19	Hamilton	1–0–1
1919–20	Hamilton	3–2–0
1920–21	Hamilton	10–0–0
1921–22	Hamilton	7–2–0
1922–23	Hamilton	4–6–0
1923–24	Hamilton	7–3–2
1924–25	Hamilton	8–3–2
1925–26	Hamilton	7–3–0
1926–27	Hamilton	6–4–0
1927–28	Hamilton	5–2–1
1928–29	Hamilton	4–6–0
1929–30	Hamilton	4–4–0
1930–31	Hamilton	7–1–1
1931–32	Hamilton	2–2–0
1932–33	Hamilton	5–1–0
1933–34	Hamilton	9–1–0
1934–35	Hamilton	6–2–0
1935–36	Hamilton	5–3–0
1936–37	Hamilton	1–6–0
1937–38	Hamilton	5–4–0
1938–39	Hamilton	5–6–0
1939–40	Hamilton	9–4–0
1940–41	Hamilton	5–4–0
1941–42	Hamilton	5–3–0
1942–43	Hamilton	5–4–0
Hamilton:		135–76–7
Colgate Red Raiders Independent (1943–1944)
1943–44	Colgate	6–4–0
Colgate:		6–4–0
Total:		141–80–7
National champion Postseason invitational champion Conference regular season champion Conference regular season and conference tournament champion Division regular season champion Division regular season and conference tournament champion Conference tournament champion

References

^ ^a ^b "Obituaries; Albert I. Prettyman". Buffalo Evening News. Buffalo, New York. May 24, 1963. p. 4. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Greater Utica Sports Hall of Fame: Albert I. Prettyman". Greater Utica Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved December 15, 2013.
^ "The Best Rink in the NESCAC". NESCAC Hockey. Archived from the original on December 16, 2013. Retrieved December 15, 2013.
^ ^a ^b ^c Mancuso, Jim (2006), "Clinton, New York, The Biggest Little Hockey Town in the USA" (PDF), SIHR Journal, p. 48
^ "Albert Prettyman Year-by-Year Coaching Record". USCHO. Retrieved December 15, 2013.
^ "U.S. Men's Olympic Team History". USA Hockey. Retrieved December 15, 2013.
^ Waleik, Gary (February 23, 2018), The U.S. Hockey Goalie Who Stood Up To Hitler At The 1936 Olympics, Boston, MA: 90.9 WBUR Radio
^ "Men's ice hockey hands out postseason awards". Hamilton College. Retrieved December 15, 2013.

External links

International Young Men's Christian Association Training School 1906 Graduating Class photo - Springfield College Archives Digital Collections

[obituary-1] "Obituaries; Albert I. Prettyman". Buffalo Evening News. Buffalo, New York. May 24, 1963. p. 4. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .

[GUSHOF-2] "Greater Utica Sports Hall of Fame: Albert I. Prettyman". Greater Utica Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved December 15, 2013.

[3] "The Best Rink in the NESCAC". NESCAC Hockey. Archived from the original on December 16, 2013. Retrieved December 15, 2013.

[SIHR-4] Mancuso, Jim (2006), "Clinton, New York, The Biggest Little Hockey Town in the USA" (PDF), SIHR Journal, p. 48

[USCHO-5] "Albert Prettyman Year-by-Year Coaching Record". USCHO. Retrieved December 15, 2013.

[6] "U.S. Men's Olympic Team History". USA Hockey. Retrieved December 15, 2013.

[7] Waleik, Gary (February 23, 2018), The U.S. Hockey Goalie Who Stood Up To Hitler At The 1936 Olympics, Boston, MA: 90.9 WBUR Radio

[8] "Men's ice hockey hands out postseason awards". Hamilton College. Retrieved December 15, 2013.

[1]

v t e Hamilton Continentals men's ice hockey
Playing venues	Russell Sage Rink (1921–present)
Head coaches	Albert I. Prettyman (1918–1943) Roswell Rudd (1946–1948) Gregory Batt (1948–1984) Phil Grady (1984–2008) Norm Bazin (2008–2011) Rob Haberbusch (2011–present)
Seasons	1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Conference affiliations	ECAC Hockey (1961–1964) ECAC 2 (1964–1984) ECAC West (1984–1992) ECAC East (1992–1999) NESCAC (1999–present)
All-time leaders	Mike Marta (209 Points) Mike Marta (119 Goals)
NCAA Tournament appearances	2017
Sid Watson winners	Evan Buitenhuis
Hamilton College Clinton, NY

v t e Colgate Raiders men's ice hockey
Formerly the Colgate Red Raiders
Playing venues	Taylor Lake (1916–1922) Starr Rink (1959–2016) Class of 1965 Arena (2016–present)
Head coaches	James Ballantine (1920–1922, 1927–1928) Raymond A. Watkins (1928–1932) J. Howard Starr (1932–1941, 1945–1950) Gregory Batt (1942–1943) Albert Prettyman (1943–1944) Tom Dockrell (1950–1951) Olav Kollevoll (1957–1965) Ron Ryan (1965–1972) Brad Houston (1972–1975) Jim Higgins (1975–1977) Terry Slater (1977–1991) Brian Durocher (1991–1992) Don Vaughan (1992–2003, 2004–2023) Stan Moore (2003–2004) Mike Harder (2023–Present)
Seasons	1915–16 1916–17 1920–21 1921–22 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Conference affiliations	Tri-State League (1950–1951) ECAC Hockey (1961–present)
All-time leaders	Mike Harder (214 Points) Dan Fridgen (114 Goals) Dan Brenzavich/Steve Silverthorn (55 Wins)
Frozen Four appearances	1990
NCAA Tournament appearances	1981 1990 2000 2005 2014 2023
Conference Tournament titles	ECAC Hockey: 1990 2023
Colgate University Hamilton, NY